Life at Agahozo Shalom Youth Village in Rwanda

Saying Goodbye

2011-02-20T01:41:00.001-08:00

I'm now back in Georgia. I'm as surprised as most of you. It was not planned but because of some health issues, this is what I needed to do. It was so difficult to tell my family and the farm workers goodbye, eventhough I hope to see them soon.

I left on Friday so on Thursday night, I got together with the farm workers and my family. I had a little party with the farm workers and told all of them that I would be going home for a bit.

They were very surprised and 2 of them ran off and bought me a gift.

The hardest part was the goodbye to the girls in my family.

I was a bit teary eyed. I tried not to be too serious and have a good night. Family time lasted an extra hour as we said our goodbyes. I went around and told all the girls what "gifts" each of them gave to me in our time together. I have to say that I learned so much from them and that night it helped me to realize all those gifts.

My New Friends

2011-02-10T21:35:00.000-08:00

I walked to the farm and found a mommy and 3 baby goats. I asked Salomon where they came from and he told me that he got them for me. I have been talking for months about how I want to have my own goats....what a wonderful surprise!!! They're so cute.

Attack of the Parasites...again

2011-02-04T21:48:00.000-08:00

I started to feel bad on Wednesday. I know my body well enough that I can tell if something is wrong. I thought maybe I had amoebas again. On Thursday, I went to get a poop test at the clinic in the local village. The technician was able to find the results pretty fast. I don't have amoebas but 3 other types of parasites. The nurse at ASYV told me that I have a farm growing in my stomach with all types of plants and animals. So now I'm talking some pretty strong medicines to try and kill everything that's trying to invade my stomach...hopefully a healthy stomach will pervail!

While I was at the local clinic, I had a situation that made me think and question my role as a western living in Rwanda. I still don't know that best way to handle the situation. Even after living in Rwanda for a year, I'm always sure how to best deal with tough questions. Poverty is something that troubles many people here. I even have close friends that struggle with the hardships. I'm very thankful to ASYV for helping some of the poorest of the poor living in the local community to get jobs that allow their families to eat everyday and provide education for their children. The students at ASYV are not the only success story of the village...it's also the workers and the people they support. I've become close to the farm workers. Many of them are like family to me. I can see the positive impact the village has had on them and it makes me happy. To give a man a job, I have learned is one of the best things that you can do!

So now back to my encounter at the local clinic. I was paying for the parasite test when I was approached by a woman. The test costs the equivilent of less than a dollar. For me, this is something that I can easily pay. The woman took me to the side and began to speak to me in Kinyarwanda. I knew gist of what she was saying, but asked my friend who's the director of the clinic. She was explaining that she's poor and wants helping paying medical bills. I'm constantly asked for money. I never know how to react. I want to give to everyone but know it's not possible. I know that I can't solve all the problems in the world but I would like to try. I know this is just not possible. I struggle with the fact that I was born in a way that allows me to eat when I want and get the best medical attention when I need it. This is not the reality for some of my neighbors living in Rubona. How do you react to this? What's the best thing to do?

Happenings these Days

2011-02-02T03:16:00.000-08:00

Here are somethings tha I have been doing these days:

Team Rwanda made it to the final for under 17 boys soccer. I went to the final with Burkina Faso with some friends and had a great time. We sat with the Rwandan fans and cheered so much. Unfortunetly they lost 2-1.

I attended a seminar where we were mapping the value chain for the poultry industry in Rwanda led by the UN's Food and Agriculure Organization. It was a great 2 days and I had the opportunity to meet all the leaders in Rwanda involved in chicken businesses.

I love spending time with the girls in my family. This was a great Sunday afternoon spent hanging out.

Mango Madness

2011-02-02T02:31:00.000-08:00

These days, the girls in my family have been very stressed and have been experiencing some difficulties in our family. I'm been trying to spend some quality time with the girls and help them through this difficult time. Yesterday was Heroes Day in Rwanda. It's a national holiday in Rwanda when everyone remembers the heroes in their life. For Heroes Day, each family was to choose the student in the family that's the hero of the family. The goal of the morning was for each family to choose the person that they see as the best leader in the family and why. I decided to do something a little different with the girls in my family. We have no counselor and my house mother needed to take care of something. I took them on a walk.

I met up with the girls in my family after breakfast. We then moved to the flag pole behind the dining hall. There we talked about the plan for the walk. Before we left, I taught them a song in hebrew...Hine ma Tov. The meaning to the song is how good is it for us to be able to sit together. I thought that this was very signifigant for the family. They really enjoyed the song. We sang it with clapping and some sang na na. We then continued to walk. They walked in groups discussing first what it means to be a leader and then they talked about someone in their lives that's a good leader and a hero for them. Our walked ended at the secret mango trees behind the school. Everyone ate sooooo many mangos! It was awesome and the girls were so happy. Everyone had beautiful mango smiles will the mango strings stuck in their teeth!

The Power of the Sun

2011-01-25T07:36:00.000-08:00

The village is installing solar powered lights! The most exciting part is that it’s generating lots of questions. As you know, my 2 favorite things to do are hanging out with my kids and spending time on the farm with the farm workers. I was working in the amashaza (my new favorite Kinyarwanda word which is peas) with 5 of the farm workers. They just installed one of the solar lights at the farm. As we were working, they asked many questions. They were asking if the light cost money. I explained that it is a onetime cost for the light but it doesn’t cost anything to run it. I explained to them how solar power works (thanks to my job at Teva!) and the power of the sun. I told them that the sun doesn’t ask us for any money and they thought it was funny. They asked if also use them in the United States. I explained about many of the technologies that are being used as alternatives to power plants. I talked about solar, hydroelectric, and windmills. The conversation turned to many other things. They had so many questions and were very interested to learn about these things. I told them about cars that are powered by vegetable oil. I told them that I have friends that go to restaurants, take the used oil from making french fries, and then turn it into something that can be used for fuel. It’s amazing how installing one light led to some many questions and such a great conversation. I think this is one of the best ways to learn by experiencing and then asking questions. Goooooo...SUN!!!!

Family Senghol with the Solar Panels

The Good Things in Life

2011-01-17T20:00:00.000-08:00

These days I've been spending much of my time on the computer finishing reports from last year. I'm very close to finishing those reports and finally spending some good time on the farm. Yesterday was a fun day at the farm. I was taking the peas from their outer shell. It's a very theraputic task. I also spent some time in the chicken house. Today we're going to weigh 150 of the chickens. This should be interesting...I'm sure some funny pictures/movies will come out of it! Last Friday night we had a party with the farm workers...I think these nights will definitely be some of my best memories.
At the Farm Worker Dance Party
It's been so great to come back and be with the girls in my family. The counselor from my family is no longer here so I've been taking a larger role in my family. They are thinking so much more maturely this year. Last year in a family debate, they decided that there was no need for a student government. Now, they're wanting more of a voice in the village and keep coming up with great ideas.

Dear Loyal Blog Readers

2011-01-11T05:38:00.000-08:00

Dear Loyal Blog Readers,

I know many of you can't get through a week without your weekly fix of Life at Agahozo Shalom. I want to apologize to all of you. It's been a rough month but now I'm back and ready to blog. Highlights include the kids returning!!!!! We also welcomed 128 new students. I attended my first Rwandan wedding. I wore traditional clothing. I also attended an agriculture training...it will have it's own blog soon.

The Joys of Life in Rubona

2010-12-17T07:20:00.000-08:00

I'm been living in Rubona, Rwanda now for almost a year and with each day, I love it more and more! These days what's making me love it even more is that I'm able to experience it with all of the new volunteers. It's like seeing a place with new eyes! Rubona is the little village where Agahozo Shalom is located. It's surrounded by this little village. If you walk down a dirt road for about 20 minutes, you reach the center of Rubona where the market is located. Walking to the market is always an adventure. I have come to really enjoy it because I always see friends along the way...one of the farm workers, his wife, a brave child that I have become friends with, or someone that just wants to practice their English. The homes are usually made of mud or cement with the most manicured front lawns.

You can hear many children yelling muzungu, muzungu along the way. I have gone through phases about what I feel about being called this. Sometimes I'm frustrated because I just want to be able to walk on my way. These days I realize that they are showing excitement just I like I'm showing excitement for new people and things. Going to the market never gets old. I guess it's the same for them...seeing someone who is different must never get old. I am trying though to introduce myself and have them look at me in a different way. If they can call me by my name then we go from outsiders to friends.

I have gone twice now with the new volunteers. I'm enjoying showing them all of my favorite places and introducing them to my favorite vendors. I took them to the home of the nuns in the area to get some pineapple wine. When we got there, they had pineapple and passionfruit wine....yummy! Yesterday we bought mangos...omg, I think I'm in love! I almost named this blog the ode to the mango but I'm sure that will come soon as I continue to eat as many as I can handle.

Enjoying the flowers at one of the homes in Rubona (I was told to be a flower)

Nothin' Like Putting Things in Perspective

2010-12-12T07:53:00.001-08:00

Today was the volunteer trip to Kigali. I missed the trip last year because I came late, so I was excited. Sometime between leaving a place called the UTC until we reached the Belgium Memorial and walking in a crowded part of town called Nyambirambo, I lost my phone. I was so frustrated and beating myself up over it. Right before I left the UTC, a friend even told me to be careful with my phone but I guess I didn't listen well enough. When I realized it was gone, I tried to call it and look in places where it may be left....no luck. I felt very distracted, hoping I would find it. I had so many numbers on the simcard of the phone. I think I was more upset loosing the simcard then having to pay for a new phone. After lunch we visited the Genocide Memorial. It's not an easy place to visit. There was so much hatred that became contagious throughout Rwanda during the time of the genocide. It made me think a lot about loss and that my phone didn't even mater in the scheme of things. There were many parts of the memorial that were difficult. There was a section devoted to children that touches deep. My phone just isn't that important. After the genocide, now there's so much hope, forgiveness, and strength amoungst the survivors. It's amazing to be a part of a village that's looking forward to a better future.

Looking Back at an Incredible Year!!!

2010-11-18T07:41:00.001-08:00

It's amazing to me that my life path led me to Agahozo Shalom Youth Village. It's definitely not something that I had planned but I believe if you allow things to happen that sometimes they will surprise you in life changing ways. This year has definitely been life changing as any experience like this should, but Agahozo Shalom is more than that. I see people that are just there one day and see the impact that it has on them. Imagine kids who were not expecting to have such a bright future...that is truly life changing. I could go on and on with stories of the incredible impact that Agahozo Shalom has on its students and everyone who is involved with the project. Throughout my blog you can find many of those stories.
It cost over $4000 per student to get a great education, have 3 meals per day, access to many activities, and a safe home to go to each night. Please help support these kids have a brighter future. Any amount can help in the effort to educate orphan students in Rwanda.
Please help in the effort. I have a goal of raising $500 this holiday season. You can visit http://www.asyv.org/ to donate and help support these teens. Please email me at amyprice33@gmail.com if you plan to donate so I can send you a personal thank you and tell you how you're helping support an amazing organization.

A Day to Party

2010-11-16T02:45:00.000-08:00

We started the day with a friendly football (soocer for those of you living in the US) game between the farm workers and landscaping workers. When I showed up to the field, all the workers were dressed in their finest clothes. I was surprised because I thought we were there to play football. They all looked so nice. Soon after I arrived, they all had on different attire and were ready to play. I even played in the beginning but gave up my spot to one of the workers. I became the referee. Some of the players have some great talent and others were funny to watch. In the end, the farm workers won!!! Go Team!!!

After the game there was a cook out planned. We were suppose to eat at 12 but it was 4 by the time we ate. It was fun waiting around with all the workers. We took lots of pictures. It was a great day to take a day off and party!

Coming to the End

2010-11-07T22:30:00.000-08:00

Things are winding down at Agahozo Shalom. The kids left on Saturday morning, I've been been cleaning my room, and finishing up on my reports of the year. It's sad to see the kids go but I feel happy to be able to see them again next year. It's strange to be in the village without all of them. The kids are what really makes this place...the beautiful songs coming from the music center, the cheering from the sports field, and the laughter coming from the homes. This is what makes a village, the people that are apart of it. Today we have a party for the farm workers. I'm sure I have lots to say about it in my next blog. What I want to write about today is 2 events from last Thursday. There hasn't been internet so here's my time to write about it.

I wasn't feeling well last Thursday morning but heard there was a soccer game so I decided to see what was happening. I arrived at the field and saw house mothers and counselors facing off. We are working in the village to empower the females. I kept thinking to myself, what better ways to empower them than to see there mothers and counselors playing sports. I was very surprised by the strenghth and toughness of some of the house mothers. They really rocked the field. I was excited when I passed to one of the moms and she scored! What a great match. In the end, it was tied 1-1. Next year I hope to see more activities like this. I'd love to see a game of female staff against the female students!

On Thursday night, Micaela and I planned an end of the year celebration for our girls. We decided on a spa night. We hard nail polish, oatmeal face masks, magazines, lotion for hand massages, music and m&m to enjoy. We started the spa night talking about inner beauty and that each have given us so much this year. We had papers around the room with each person's name and it said is special because... All the girls signed each others. The night was a big success with each of the girls having a great time. At the end, they thanked Micaela and I and gave each of us a gift.

They're Finally Here!!!!

2010-10-29T13:08:00.000-07:00

After months and months of preparing, learning, and buying supplies I'm very happy to report that last night at 6pm 1299 very happy chicks arrived at Agahozo Shalom Youth Village! They are eating, drinking, making lots of noise, and playing with each other...they are overall enjoying their new home!

Importance of Relationships

2010-10-22T08:33:00.000-07:00

I’m so lucky to have the best parents in the world. I feel that they raised me with a great set of values. One of the most important lessons that I was taught was the importance of creating relationships with people. My dad many times would tell me this while giving example of how connections with people will help you in everything that you do. He has been successful in his career because of the relationships that he has created over the years. My mom just by the way she lives demonstrates this. I can remember as a young child being reminded of this. My parents would encourage me to make my own phone calls and always remind me to ask people how they are doing. These lessons have really paid off in my time here. I’m realizing that many of my success here have come from fostering relationships. Many of the times luck brings me to the right people but it’s the relationship creating that helps in the improvement and growing of the farm. I realized how incredible this has been for me here when I got a call this morning. At Hash I met this man who works for the Ministry of Agriculture. We became friends and I kept encouraging him to visit the farm. Yesterday, he finally came and was very impressed! I got a call from him today inviting someone from the village to attend a 13 day seminar on greenhouses. The ministry is bringing someone from Belgium to teach the class….and the class is free! We’re getting 5 greenhouses so this will be very helpful. I realized that I would never have known about the class if I wasn’t encouraging my friend to come for a visit. Also in the chicken business, creating connections with people that have lots of knowledge in the area has benefitted our business tremendously. There are many other examples here and each one is allowing me to grow and develop.

Another Year

2010-10-20T10:31:00.000-07:00

So, I’ve decided to stay another year. For those friends and family that I haven’t told yet, I’m sorry that this is the way that you’re finding out. I was not the easiest decision to make. I kept going back and forth weighting out all of my options and what would be best for me. I wasn’t sure if I made the right decision…would I regret it? Is it the right thing for me? In the past few weeks, I’ve been asking myself many questions about my future and which path is for me. Yogi Berra, the famous catcher once said when you come to a fork in the road, just take it! I’m taking my fork and running. I’m had a few instances lately that have reassured my decision.

On Saturday, I took the farm club on a trip. We left the village after the kids showed up 30 minutes late (we had a long talk about that). Our destinations for the day were some greenhouses and an organic training center. The kids loved it! They kept asking such great questions and just wanted to learn more and more. Many of them kept coming up to me and thanking me for bringing them on the trip. They got so much out of it and just want to learn more. This was so exciting for me. Next year a big part of my job will be agriculture education. 90% of this country is engaged in agriculture. We want to teach our kids advanced skills to allow them to have useful abilities and knowledge for the future. They said that they want to visit the places again to learn more. I want to incorporate those things into our farm so that all the kids don’t have to travel far to learn. Before and after the trip, many other kids have come up to me asking to me in farm club for next year.

Monday was my last time teaching yoga to a group of girls. I tried to make the class fun and also teach them how yoga can benefit their lives. I wasn’t sure what they thought. For the last class, I let each of them lead their favorite pose for the group. Everyone was excited to lead a little part of the class. At the end, I asked them what they thought about yoga and how it can benefit their lives. They said many ways that they feel that it will benefit them.

These are 2 of the reasons that I want to stay another year, to bring more farm education to the village and work with students to find better ways to manage their stress, anger, and emotions.

This Weekend

2010-10-12T13:18:00.000-07:00

This was a great weekend. Many weekends I feel pulled in many directions. I want to go and visit friends in Kigali but sometimes I have guilt for not staying with the kids. This weekend was a great balance…something that I work every day to achieve.

On Friday I traveled around Kigali with the director, Nir, Salomon, and the man who work with the chickens, Alfred. Our mission was to look at some chicken operations around Kigali. We visited 2 different places. Our first stop was to the ministry of agriculture. We met up with a man there and traveled 5 minutes to the National Hatchery. There were no chickens there but we got a tour and had the opportunity to learn many things. I was most interested in learning about their bio-security measures. I got some great ideas and useful information. Our next stop was the largest chicken business in Rwanda. I was shocked. The places smelled horrible (I surprised none of the workers passed out) and the birds all looked so sickly. Sometimes you can learn more from how not to do it…this was definitely the case here.

There was no running or farm on Saturday morning. Instead we prepared ourselves for a picnic! We got on the buses and headed to Seeds of Peace which is located on Lake Muhazi. It’s a beautiful place right on the water with a very large area to hang out. When we arrived, everyone went in all directions. Some went toward the lake, others enjoyed the swing, and some enjoyed just sitting down and relaxing. I found myself trying to enjoy everything and spend time with different students. Each family got to visit a replica of the king’s hut. We were shown all around and learned the history. The girls in my family loved taking pictures inside. After visiting the hut, I played frisbee with many of the kids. The big challenge was that the place to play was on a hill and some of the frisbees kept landing in the water.

Just before lunch I left the picnic and headed to Kigali. I got lucky because just as I walked outside, there was an express bus heading to Kigali. I arrived in Kigali just in time for my running group, Hash. The Hash was taking place at the Mutzig Beer Fest. The run was on top of a mountain where we could see all of Kigali. After the run, it was time for some good food, hanging out with good friends, beer (I’m getting so tired of the beer here), and lots of dancing! At the end of the night, I went camping with some friends at a place overlooking the entire city.

A Crazy Day in Kigali

2010-10-11T08:44:00.000-07:00

Days in Kigali buying chicken food are never predictable. Sometimes we buy the things we need with ease and other times it’s a battle. The plan was to go on a Wednesday so I called the Monday before to check the prices of all the items. I wrote all those prices down, filled out a requisition, and got a check for all the ingredients. This sounds pretty easy right? All I need to do is take the money to the bank and then go to all those places and pay for the items…wrong…it was not nearly that simple.

I slept in Kigali the night before and then Salomon met me in Kigali the next day. I went to the bank and got the money…we were ready to begin. Our first stop was to buy indagara which is small fish from Tanzania. You can smell it from a mile away so we followed our noses. When we got there, I bargained hard for a better price. The price of indagara is very high these days which is raising the cost of the food. Finally I got a better price. We left it there and said we’d be back later to pick it up. Our next stop was the place where we get the majority of the ingredients. We arrived there and all of a sudden all the prices they told us from 2 days before were so much higher. This was the second time that they did this to us. I told them that they will lose our business because we need to find someone to rely on and that when we call we get the same price as when we arrive. The guy said well then go somewhere else…can’t you see what great customer service they have. I started to panic a little. I didn’t know of another place and I have 200 chickens to feed. We started asking around and finally someone pointed us in the right direction. Thank goodness the owner was there and agreed to give us good prices. He even promised to give us the price he tells us on the phone.

Before we could load, Salomon and I needed to find a truck. We arrived at the place with all the trucks and all the drivers there came running at me. They were pulling me in all directions trying to get me to use their truck. After a few minutes of being yelled at in Kinyarwanda and pulled around, I pointed at Salomon and said Salomon’s the boss! Everyone left me and attacked Salomon. I felt so relieved and a little sorry for him. Finally we had a truck! We went back to load up everything. They were missing one thing so we had to drive a little distance to find the last ingredient.

We went back to pick up the indagara and that’s when it got a little crazy. Everyone that I saw began demanding money from me. First the truck driver demanded more, saying that we didn’t agree on a fair price, then a man that was helping us asked for money after I already gave him some, and then the place for indagara wanted me to pay more. It was a little overwhelming all at once. There were even more instances of people asking and demanding money from me.

I decided that I need to learn how to say in Kinyarwanda, you’re taking money from orphan children!

Holiday Time

2010-10-05T08:30:00.000-07:00

This year the holiday was celebrated differently than if I was in the states. All of the volunteers expressed what made the holiday special for them and we tried as best as we could to incorporate all of them to make the holiday meaningful. Some people wanted a tasty round challah, others a touching chol nidre for Yom Kippur, and still others a sukkah makes the holidays.

Rosh Hashana was spent in the village. I headed to the kitchen early the morning before to prepare the dough for the challot. It was a fun way to get into the holiday spirit. The highlight of Rosh Hashana was the delicious meal we all shared together. Everyone made such yummy food that made it really feel like a holiday...but of course I missed my mom's noodle dish that I love. Yom Kippur was spent in Kigali. I had a wonderful fish dinner for the pre-fast meal. One of the volunteers sang a very beautiful Kol Nidre. It felt very meaningful. That night I went camping with a friend and broke the fast on a meal that was cooked on a campfire.

Sukkot is one of my favorite holidays. I have great memories of decorating the sukkah is the parking lot of my synogogue at home. Since Sukkot is a harvest holiday and now I'm a farmer, it's even more significant. I even slept out in the sukkah. One of the highlights was sharing a meal in the sukkah with all of the farm workers.

Teaching Important Lessons

2010-09-26T23:00:00.000-07:00

I think that I’ve taught many important lessons during my time in Rwanda. I taught a girl how to ride a bicycle and co-taught a family time on the importance of politeness. These are all very important but the one I taught yesterday has to be the funniest.

When you take the bus from Kigali to the village, you must get off at a place called Ntunga and then take a moto. When you get off the bus, the moto drivers swarm you hoping to get your business. I have a feeling that they don’t get much business so it’s a fighting match to see who can take people on their moto. It gets annoying having moto drivers following you and throwing their helmets in your face. One of my biggest frustrations is that most of the moto drivers have helmets that don’t even fit. As your riding, the helmet is falling in your face. It’s definitely a safety issue but I also just like to enjoy the view.

When I got off yesterday, one moto driver came after me. I needed to go in one of the store to buy something and he even followed me into the store. When I came out, I went over to where all the drivers were waiting. I tried on all of their helmets before selecting one of the drivers. Many people were looking on and laughing at the scene. They should learn. You need to have good helmets for passengers. The lesson didn’t stop here. On the moto drive to the village, the driver’s cell phone rang. He picked up the phone and began pressing buttons. He wasn’t even paying attention to the drive. I then reached over and took the cell phone out of his hands and said in English (which I know he didn’t understand) it’s not safe to use the phone and drive at the same time. It continued to ring and I refused to let him answer.

Moral of the story: Have a good helmet and don’t talk on the phone and drive.

PIZZA!!!

2010-09-16T18:06:00.000-07:00

I've been dreaming about making this for months now. Hands down, the best meal that I have cooked in Rwanda! It was such a delicious treat. The Rwandan food is very difficult to eat at times so I have to be creative in what I cook. The Rwandan food has lots of beans that hurt my stomach and a Rwandan eggplant that makes the food bitter. I get so happy in the dining hall when those ingredients are not in the food but most of the time I'm not that lucky.

Chapati Pizza Extraordinaire
Sauce:
tomatoes from the ASYV farm
tomatoes paste
parsley from the ASYV farm
water

Topping:
green peppers from the ASYV farm
onions from the ASYV farm
mushrooms from the ASYV farm
cheese that must be aquirred on a trip to Kigali

Bread:
chapati that can only be found in the village on Wednesday and Saturday

You cab see that it takes a little planning to coordinate. It can only be made on certain days when someone is going to Kigali. It's all made on the stove.

Yummy!!!!

Picture Day

2010-09-14T06:20:00.000-07:00

Sometimes when things don’t go as planned…I just have to laugh

2010-09-14T04:59:00.000-07:00

Sometimes when things don’t go as planned…I just have to laugh. I can’t believe that I’m saying that and having those thoughts. It’s not what I would have done in the time before Rwanda. If you don’t understand what I mean, let me explain.

If you’ve read any of my other blogs, you know that a lot of my time has been dedicated to chickens. I spent 3 months in the beginning research, learning, and talking to many people about the creation of a chicken business. I feel that I put together a well research and thought out plan. It was approved in May and I was so excited! I was ready to bring in our first group of 1,200 day old laying chicks. I did the research and found a good place to order them. Little did I know that the process of getting chicks in Rwanda is not that easy.

I began by trying to order them from a place in Zimbabwe. I went with that hatchery because I knew of another place in Rwanda who had success with them and they had a good price. Originally we were supposed to get them the first week of June. Then I was told June 16th but our office didn’t get the paperwork to them in time. Then we made another date for them to come and it didn’t work out. Then we found out that Kenyan Airways has a back order on shipping livestock. He said he would get back to me as soon as possible. He then told me that we should find another place. I tried different places. I tried to have meetings for a month with a guy in Kigali but that didn’t work out. Finally we decided to go with a place in Uganda and we would just drive to get them. They said send us the money and then a month after that, you can come to pick up the chicks. We wired the money 10 days ago. Last week I sent an email to the place asking if they received it…they hadn’t.

I was in a meeting today and we got a call from our bank that the account number was not correct that our accounting department sent…when I found this out, I couldn’t help but laugh. I’m trying to do all I can to get them here but it doesn’t always work out like you think.

L'chaim!

2010-09-13T02:03:00.000-07:00

Salomon came to Agahozo yesterday to pick me up. We then walked down a steep hill…our destination, the wedding of one of the farm workers. I was dressed in a nice long skirt so walking down the muddy slope was not an easy task. The view was beautiful as we walked down. We could see the festivities happening in the distance. When we arrived all heads were turned our way. I asked Salomon where we would watch the festivities from and he said that we would just stand in the back, but that would not be the case. We were soon escorted to the front and given the most comfortable chairs to watch the ceremony. Salomon and I felt like the king and queen at the wedding. We were also both brought beer to drink. Everyone was drinking local banana beer during the ceremony. I was thankful that I was brought a bottle of real beer…that banana beer is strong but you could see that it brought people lots of joy.

The man getting married has been with the bride for probably around 12 years. They even have 4 children together. It’s common in rural areas for people to wait for an official marriage until they are able to save the money for a good wedding. Working at Agahozo has allowed him to save the needed money for the wedding.

The ceremony was very interesting. When we arrived there were 4 men sitting behind tables with 2 on each side. One group was advocating from the groom and the other for the bride. The 2 groups talked back and forth, everyone was laughing at what was said. It was like a Rwandan comedy show. One side kept saying that they have a man to be married and the other said they have the woman. At one point the group advocating for the woman brought out a 12 year old girl and everyone laughed. After some time, the groom was presented and then a little later, the bride arrived. When the bride arrived, she brought gifts for her family and the groom’s family. The groom presented a cow to his father in law. Some woman soon broken into song and began to traditional dance. The bride and groom did not share a kiss but it seemed that the giving each a drink of the beer was the equivalent (it was kind of like the eating each other a piece of cake).

I was introduced by the man leading the ceremony as the honored guest. I even gave a speech. I told everyone what a great worker the groom is and that I enjoy going to the farm to see him. He’s always smiling. He doesn’t speak any English but somehow we’ve become good friends. At the end of my speech, I told everyone that in my tradition when someone gets married, you raise your glass and say l’chaim to the new couple. I told everyone that it’s Hebrew and it wishes the new couple a good life today. All the guests joined me in a l’chaim!

Counting of the Chickens

2010-09-02T06:13:00.000-07:00

A Representative of the American Culture

2010-08-30T13:35:00.000-07:00

Tonight I was asked to be the representative of the American culture for the village's culture club. They're wanting to learn about many different cultures. After I spoke on different topics, I asked the kids about what surprised them the most. Here's what they said.

They asked about relationships...they especially wanted to know if you can have a boyfriend/girlfriend in school. I told them many people in high school are in a relationship and they can even hold hand or kiss at school. They were shocked. Another person raised their hand and asked, and they don't get in trouble? In Rwanda, a head master can kick out students if they are caught kissing.

In Rwanda if you ask a kid where an egg comes from they will say a chicken. There was a questionaire asked to kids in the states. When they were asked where an egg comes from, the most common answer was the grocery store. I explained to them that there are many people in the states that have never even seen a farm.

I hope that I representated the USA well in my talk...it's a lot of pressure to represent an entire country.

Ode to the Glorious Rain

2010-08-30T13:23:00.001-07:00

It has been too long without rain. Being a farmer rain is pretty important. Also I have hated all the dust. It makes breathing so difficult. So today, the rains finally poured down…I rejoiced! It began when I was in the dining hall. As I was walking back, kids were racing past me to not get as wet. For me, I walked slowly…enjoying every drop and fell on me. It was cool but who cares…it’s finally here!

This year the rain came a few weeks early. I was wondering about this and then thought back on my weekend. I have been saying ever since I arrived here that I have a new sense about the importance of faith. Many of the kids help to show me this every day. Their strong faith allows them to overcome all the difficulties in life. I definitely see a difference here between those with strong faiths and those without. There’s a confidence that comes with faith.

So you might be wondering what’s the correlation between rain and faith? This weekend I attended more faith based activities than I think ever in my life. On Friday night I attended an orthodox style Shabbat service, on Saturday I attended the baptism of 4 of the kids, and on Sunday I attended the confirmation ceremony of 10 kids. Just as the confirmation ceremony was ending…the rains came! I also had a really great walk around the farm on Sunday which for me is the best of the faith based experiences…putting a small seed in the ground and watching it growing into something that nourishes us…pretty miraculous!

I’m just sayin’…the rains are finally here!!!!

A Traditional Rwandan Story

2010-08-28T04:55:00.000-07:00

In the first few months while I was here, I frequently attended traditional art. I started making a traditional Rwandan basket. It’s something that I enjoyed doing very much. I’d spend an hour or so sitting and working on the basket. One of the most fun parts of working on the basket was sitting and taking with the 4 house mothers that thought the class. It has been months since I attended but finally I made my way back…and boy am I glad that I did.

I sat down last Wednesday to continue work on back basket. The house mothers and I began to talk about their increased knowledge of English. One of the house mothers asked me if I’d like to hear a traditional Rwandan story. I was very excited and of course said yes. Then she began. Here’s what I remember of the story that she told. If I make any mistakes I apologize. Do you know Jesus? She began by asking me this question. I told her that I’ve heard of him.

Here’s the story: Jesus and his mother Mary were both together in Rwanda. They were both enjoying listening to music and dancing. Then they decided to go to hell to find Satan and Bob Marley to help them create great music for Rwanda. Jesus was sent to get the 2 musicians. Mary told Jesus that he better return on time. Time management was what she told him. Jesus went to get them and returned late. Peter was at the door and would not let them into the room because they were not on time.

During the whole story the other house mothers and I could not stop laughing.

The Power of ASYV

2010-08-23T01:15:00.000-07:00

Just before the vacation, I was talking with one of the staff members about my plans for the vacation. He told me that I should think about just visiting my kids in Kigali because it’s going to be too expensive to see all of them. I thought about what he said…just then I realized that others are paying to go on safari and this is how I want to spend my vacation. I’m so glad that I didn’t listen to him. Through my visits, I was truly able to witness the positive affect that ASYV is having on these girls. As these girls are having positive experiences, the affect is extending to everyone around them. I’d like to share 2 stores from my adventures visiting the girls that demonstrate this fact.

As I sat with one of my girls in her house, I immediately noticed a change. When she arrived at ASYV, she exhibited little confidence, barely spoke, and usually sat/walked with her head down. I asked her family that was sitting in the room with us if they have noticed a change since she began to live at ASYV. The 2 people that were sitting in the room back got big grins on their faces as they told me that before she was at ASYV, she never talked to them. When she returned home from vacation, they said that she could stop talking about everything that she did and learned. After listening to what her family had to say, she began to talk about tikkun lev (repairing the heart) and tikkun olam (repairing the world). These are both Hebrew words that all the kids in the village have learned about. She began to explain what they mean. She talked about how now she’s working on tikkun lev…working on making herself strong and soon she explained that she would get the opportunity to go into the community and help others. She was excited as she talked about her excitement for these concepts. I was shocked; even better, her family was shocked to hear all this come out of her mouth. Not just for her confidence as she spoke but what she was saying were extraordinary concepts for her. This experience has stayed with me as a true success for what we’re trying to do at ASYV.

The second girl that I want to talk about was similar to the first for they both show how much self confidence that the village as instilled in the kids. This girl’s family is poor and there are many kids living in one home. I think that I counted 10 kids total…that’s a lot of mouths to feed. The parents were both very nice and happy that I visited. I couldn’t get over the difference between the girl from my family and the other kids. The confidence that we was exhibiting was amazing. I asked her a question about the village. She then began to tell me about how she has begun to hold family time for her family many nights (we have family time every night in the village where we talked about issues in the family, school, life in the village, thoughts on the future, and many other topics). All I could think about was the incredible impact that ASYV is having on this entire family. She continued to tell me that in family time, she encourages all her sibling to think about the future. For those of you who know Rwanda, this is not normal talk in a rural Rwandan home. I was so proud to be there.

I’m so sad to say that in the vacation one of the kids who has been battling with heart problems died in South Africa from surgery that was performed to save her life. I was so sad to learn this. She was such a beautiful girl that was battling for so long. It was hard for our entire community. I went to the ceremony for her on the Sunday that we returned from vacation. I sat next to 3 girls from my family. I asked one of the girls if the girl that died had any family outside of ASYV. She replied ASYV was her family. I continued to be touched by this statement as I sat emotional through the service.

I realized something through these 3 stories…ASYV is a family and the role models for many Rwandan youth looking for a brighter future.

Journey to the West

2010-08-21T23:25:00.000-07:00

I was so excited for the visit of my friend Elana. She’s the one that I backpacked through Europe 5 years ago. We decided to have a tour of the western part of Rwanda. We started our journey. I was excited to be traveling again with Elana and for her to meet 2 of the girls in my family. We boarded the bus for our 3 hour journey to Gisenyi which is a town on Lake Kivu. It also borders Congo. We arrived, checked into our hostel, and then headed to visit one of my girls. It was such a great visit. Elana got a more real insight into the village. The girl that we visited has such a beautiful smile and a strong faith that will take her far in life. It was wonderful to meet her family. I heard so much about them. The next day was election day in Rwanda. I heard many ideas about what the day might bring…but if someone hadn’t told me, you would never have known. We took the morning slow and then headed to enjoy some sun at Lake Kivu. In the late afternoon, we took a bus to the brewery close by but unfortunately, you can only get a tour on Thursday. We found a place close by to eat fish and enjoy a beer. We also went to the nearby fancy hotel. We walked in just as they had a traditional dance performance.

We found out at about 5 in the morning that Paul Kagame won a second term as president of Rwanda. There was lots of celebrating and loud drums in the street. I was not sure what this day would bring for us. We were headed to visit another girl in my family. The counselor in my family came to visit her last vacation and the only thing that she could say about the experience is…it’s soooo far. We left at 6:30 to begin the adventure to the unknown. It took a 2hr 30min bus ride over rough tertian and through large tea plantations and then a 1hr 15min moto ride to finally reach her house. It was such a relief then we finally saw her. What a wonderful visit we had. We ate so many tree tomatoes. The visit made the craziness to get there so worth it! We headed back to Gisenyi and then hopped on a bus for another hour and arrived in Ruhengari just as it was getting dark. He had another adventure planned for the next day.

The next day we got up early to hike Bisoke, one of the volcanoes in Volcano National Park. This is the same area where people go to see the gorillas…we were hoping to see them but didn’t get lucky. We met 3 British kids in a gap year between high school and university that we spent the day with. The hike was great. It was challenging and we had a slow and steady pace to help get us to the top. As we got closer to the top, we entered a cloud…you could not see very far. There was a crater lake at the top of the volcano that was freezing. I was only brave enough to give my pinky a little swim. There were some Russians on our trip that were determined to go for a swim but the Rwandan army and our guide was keeping a close watch. Going down was much easier on the breathing but I also find it more difficult. We encountered a chameleon on our way down. It’s not a gorilla but still exciting for us.

The next day Elana headed back to Kigali and I visited the last girl from my family on the list! Her visit also consisted of a long moto ride but a great visit. She had 2 homes that we bounced back and forth from to visit everyone in her family. Later that night, I went to a friend’s home to celebrate the birthday of 4 friends. What a fun end to a great week!

Vacation...Week 2

2010-08-21T21:19:00.000-07:00

My second week of vacation was filled with trips to visit my kids and my naming Hash. On Tuesday, I went to visit 2 of my girls that live very close to each other. I had great visits with both. The next day I went to visit another one of my girls. In the afternoon, 3 of the girls came over. I’m enjoying spending so much time with the girls in my family. I’m realizing that you really get to know someone when you get to know their families and see them in a different environment. On Thursday, I headed to the eastern province for more visits. My first stop was Rwamagana. The first girl that I visited kept we very busy visiting everyone in her family. My next stop was Kayonza where I was greeted with a lovely meal. All these visits continue to show me that I made the right decision in visiting my family in the vacation.

I made my way back to Agahozo and spent Friday with a needed day of rest. I also went to Rubona where Solomon helped me prepare for the next day’s festivities. We set all the arrangements at the bar in Ruboba, picked out our goat for the brochettes, and found someone to fry bananas. I’ve talked a lot about Hash. After you attend 10 hashes, you receive a hash name from the group. It was finally my turn…and even better, I get to do it with my friend Michelle! Michelle and her husband Nate came on Friday night so that we could set the Hash Saturday morning. We woke up on Saturday and were joined by Elana (a friend of mine who I met in Israel and is working for the summer in Tanzania) and Uyen. The 4 of us embarked to set our trail with shredded paper. We started the trail at the mango tree in the village. The trail wound its way to the farm, past the cows and chickens. We then left Agahozo and began to lay a trail through Rubona. As we passed the Catholic Church there must have been 60 kids that emerged. They were very curious about the shredded pieces of paper that we were placing on the ground. Many kids began to follow us as we continued to set the trail. The trail ended at the bar in Rubona.

I sat around anxiously awaiting the arrival of everyone. It was killing me. I was so excited and just wanted everyone to arrive. I got a call from the group as they were leaving Kigali and got news that many people were coming. Finally, they were here! Michelle and I went to greet everyone at the gate with some fun hats on. When everyone arrived, we circled up by the mango tree and then we were off. Michelle led the walkers and I led the runners. We had 2 check points which means that the trail could be in any direction. People have to go scout out the correct trail. The correct trail is the one that has 3 piles of shreddies in a row.

The trail ended in Rubona. We were greeted with water, soda, beer, and decorations by Solomon. We had the outside area and a room inside. Solomon decorated the room with a fun welcome sign. Once everyone arrived, Rambo circled us up. Michelle and I were brought into the circle and everyone said what they thought of the trail. A song was sung and then we had to drink. Other people were brought to the center including new people and people who have missed too many hashes. Finally it was time…for my naming. I have been scared for months. Many of the hash names are very sexual or inappropriate. I had no idea what kind of name that I would get. I was brought into the middle and people asked me many questions. I was sent away as the rest of the group deliberated. After some time, I was brought back to the circle. I was told to kneel down and I was told my name as beer and dirt were poured all over me. I finally have my hash name…PussyCat!

A Trip Down the Nile

2010-08-15T21:55:00.000-07:00

Jinja is the adventure capital of Uganda. After the Hash event, I stayed an extra day in Jinja with 3 other friends for whitewater rafting down the Nile River. It was quite the adventure there were class 5 rapids throughout the day. We even flipped on one of the rapids. As our guide flipped the raft back over, she fell on my head. I was under the raft then, but got pulled back into the raft by one of my friends. The photographer’s name was Moses so that means that I floated down the Nile with Moses! The pictures tell all for this adventure!

After the rafting we had a barbeque at the rafting place. It was beautiful there the way that the place was on a hill overlooking the river. I was originally going to return to Kigali the same day decided to stay at the hostel at the rafting place. Every time that I stay at a hostel, I remember how much I love to stay at hostels and be around all the travelers. The next day I traveled back to Kampala. The highlight was Mexican food in Kampala. It was so tasty...and I even got a margarita!

View of the Nile River from our hostel

Slow and steady wins the race…or at least ensures that you don’t get last place!

2010-08-05T12:14:00.000-07:00

I have talked about the Hash in other of my blogs…it’s the drinking group with a running problem. There are about 50 people that come each Saturday for a run somewhere around Kigali and sometimes we go away to different places. The Hash group in Kampala, Uganda organized an event in Kampala and invited us to come. There were 28 people from Kigali that went to the event! We drove 9hrs to Kampala. The event was a relay race from Kampala to Jinja which is an 88kg run. We had 2 teams of 9 people for the relay. Each person on the team ran or walked a different distance depending on which seed we were running in. My first run was very difficult. It was very hot and hilly. From the beginning, I was determined to keep my pace slow and steady…which of course I did! I started out the last person and ended up passing 2 people. I realized later that seed 2 is meant to be your second best runner on your team…I was definitely out of my league but I had a good time. I switched to a different seed for my second run and did very well. The second run was soooo hot and the finish was a steap hill. The whole event was such great fun! It was so well organized. The runners in each seed started at the same time and the next group left when everyone returned. Once a group left, we would hop into our bus for a drive to the finish line. In that way, we saw everyone finish their run…I enjoyed cheering for people. The run from Kampala to Jinja took the whole day and 88km! It was also just so fun spending the day with friends!

Vacation to Real Rwanda

2010-08-05T11:52:00.000-07:00

I had a very professional tour guide for the first leg of my vacation and he insisted that I call this journey, the vacation to real Rwanda. He leads tours around Rwanda so I was lucky to have him as my guide. Before we left on the journey, I went to visit one of my girls in Kigali. Her family has a beautiful home with a garden. I met her mom and brothers. We were talking about many things and had a wonderful visit. Her mom has breast cancer just as my mom had a few years ago. It’s sad that the treatment in Rwanda is not the same as the US. Her mom was so beautiful and I loved spending the time with the girl in my family with her family.

This journey was to the southern province in Rwanda. The first stop was at one of my girl’s house in Gitarama. She was so cute. She kept calling and telling me to practice good time management so that I would be there on time. I was very impressed with her when we arrived. She cooked a Rwandan feast! I ate sooo well. It made up for the many, many meals that I’ve had there were not so appetizing. I enjoyed talking with her father, listening to one of her brother’s sing and dance, and the courage that one of her sisters had in practicing English. I was also just good to spend some time with her. After the visit, they took us to the bus.

Our next stop was Butare. I have been dreaming about coming to Butare ever since that I found out that they have a real ice cream shop! It’s a project by an ice cream shop in New York that employees local women and teaches them English and business skills. It felt so good to eat ice cream…it’s one thing that I miss. The next day we went to visit another girl in my family. We tried to contact her the day before but only reached a sister living in Kigali. The sister told us that she would contact her and have her meet us at a market close by. The message never got to her so we went searching for her. The only information that we had was that she lives in a community of child headed households. That means that in the community, the children raised each other. We finally found her! She was so surprised which added to the excitement of the visit. I also got to meet some of her brothers and sisters. The house was so nice with an amazing view. We even worked on reading the book that she checked out from the library. Our next stop before getting on a bus was the National Museum of Rwanda.

He hopped on one of the local buses for the amazingly beautiful ride to see another one of my girls in Nyamagabe. She had to leave the village a little early because her mother was in the hospital so I was so happy to meet her mother and see her healthy. The girl in my family sang a song for all of us that was so beautiful…she has an amazing voice. From Nyamagabe, my friend and I began our hike to Nyanza. This is the part that he calls visiting the real Rwanda. We hiked through the countryside of Southern Rwanda. Along the way we I would yell good afternoon in Kinyarwanda to all the people that we passed. Some of the kids were excited to see a muzungu and others ran in fright as I approached. We met some kids playing soccer. I stopped to play with them for a few minutes…I think they were impressed with my skills. Our destination for the day was my friend’s land and home of some of his family members. He’s been there many times and knows the area well. There are 2 secret waterfalls along the way that were beautiful surprises. I could not believe that there was so much water in the dry season. We even met a man that diverted some of the water from the falls so that his land could get water in the dry season…it was impressive. I was also impressed by the way people farmed in the area. There was so much water! They work all year to make sure that they have water even in the dry season. Trenches were dug and lakes made. I think the Southern Provence is the land of the pig. We kept seeing children chasing pigs. The first day we hiked about 18 km.

We slept for the night in the quiet village. There was no electricity in the village so most all activity stopped at nightfall. We woke up early in the morning, had tea, said our goodbyes, and hit the trail. On the trail we found an old small bicycle toy and we said that we would keep it and give it to some kid to enjoy along the trail. After a few hours, we came to a fork in the trail. There were a group of people there so we asked which way to travel. He told us that we was headed in the same direction and would join us for the journey. He said that it would be about an hour to the market that he was headed to sell wood. We learned many things about this man along the way. Every day, he travels to the market that’s open on that day. He sells a bundle of wood for 300rwf which is about 50cents and only enough to buy 2kg of potatoes. Sometimes he says that he gets lucky and if the market is close, he can make 2 or 3 journeys. He told us that he has 4 kids and that his wife left him…can you imagine just 2kg of potatoes to feed 5 hungry people. He also told us that he recently found out that he’s HIV positive. When we reached the market, we bought him some local sorghum beer and gave him the toy we found earlier to give to his children. He left him at the market (well we did physical, but his story still remains with me) and continued our journey.

We still had a few hours until we reached our destination. Everyone that we would asked about the time would tell us something different. It became very funny after awhile. The most exciting part of the last leg of the journey was finding a woman making veggie samosas. This came after climbing a hill that I thought would never end. The samosas were awesome…that also might be because we just hiked over 30km! We finally reached our destination in Nyanza, the King’s Palace.

The palace was cool. They had both a replica of the traditional Rwandan palace and the one that was built by the Belgians. I enjoyed learning about the traditional Rwandan palace. They are round and have 3 polls sticking out of them to represent that it’s for the king. There would also be homes with the 3 polls all over Rwanda that signified that it’s one of the king’s women. At the kings palace, there were many of the buildings…one for the king, one for his wife, one for making beer, one for the milk, and others that I can’t remember their uses. The king would sit at the entrance with his queen (the queen is chosen by the king’s mom). People would come to greet him and ask questions throughout the day. He would also be entertained inside his home.

This vacation was awesome but very tiring…we hiked around 55km in 2 days!

Vacation Time...woot! woot!

2010-08-04T09:27:00.000-07:00

The next few posts that you will read are about my vacation! I thought hard about what I wanted to do for the vacation. As I was thinking about my plan, some of the girls in my family began to ask me to visit them. I then decided that I would visit all the girls in my family that invited me to come to their homes. I collected all of their phones and set a plan to visit. I’m not sure what to expect when I visit. I know that you can better understand someone when you find out their history and where they come from. I’m hoping this experience will bring me even closer to these girls that I have already come to love so much! I have a map of Rwanda on the right panel so when I mention names of places, you can have a reference of where they are located.

My first order of business was to cook American hamburgers for my friend Gilbert’s mom. First I had to go to the meat market in Nyabugogo and then to the grocery store that caters to foreigners for ketchup, mustard, cheese, and pickles…things that don’t exist in Rwandan food…can you believe that! Then we went to her home. More of our friends joined us for the afternoon. I cooked 10 hamburgers on a small coal stove so as you can imagine, it took hours. In between cooking I enjoyed watching the 4days old chicks and playing with the little girl that lives in the house. The final product was a success. Everyone enjoyed their burger, even the Rwandans!

Party Time!!!

2010-08-04T09:20:00.000-07:00

We must have looked like a parade or part of the political campaign as we drove down the dusty dirt road for the destination of our party. There were 18 people tightly packed into the small mini-bus but that didn’t seem to bother anyone. There was lots of wonderful traditional Rwandan singing. It was just as thrilling to watch as it was to be a participant. I find that a lot here. We finally arrived to the beautiful Lake Muhazi.

The event was just wonderful…everyone seemed to be have such a great time! Highlights for me were talking with other staff, taking lots of pictures, playing frisbee, swimming in the lake, going on a boat ride, and the singing with traditional dance. The boat ride was really cool. I went in one of the small Rwandan fishing boats. I learned all about being a fisherman in Rwanda. They go out from 6pm to 6am. Sometimes they even sleep in the water. As I went for a ride, the fisherman kept using a bucket to take out the water that was filling the boat. He asked if I had fear but I was having such a great day that if I went over, it would just add to the excitement.

Tikkun Olam=Brilliant!

2010-08-03T23:33:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite activities in the village is Tikkun Olam. In Hebrew it means repairing the world. It has come to mean doing good things for others. In Judaism there’s an idea that a butterfly flapping its wings half way around the world can have an impact even if it is in a very small away. Here’s also an idea that even those that have nothing should even find something to give for contribute. The kids have also embraced the idea of tikkun olam and even talk about doing some kind of tikkun olam when they are home on vacation. The first year the students arrive, the concentration is on tikkun ha’lev…this emphasis is on repairing oneself. The second is about tikkun olam. It’s amazing to hear the excitement for helping others…what a brilliant idea!

The students at ASYV work in 3 different places in Rubona for tikkun olam…the clinic, the school, and at people’s homes. We had a celebration to acknowledge the hard work in those areas. The celebration was equipped with traditional dancing, a drama performance, speeches, and pictures. They also raised money for the village. I thought some of the counselors came up with a brilliant idea. At first, they were just asking people for money and then they announced a little competition. If one of the counselors collected the most money, he would win the sun glasses of the other counselor in the competition. The two had a fierce competition. Students, other counselors, house mothers, and others began going to the microphone and pledging money for the one they thought should win. I asked all the kids who I was sitting around who I would pledge my money to win the glasses. One of the counselors was behind who they said that I should give to him to make it more of a completion. I thought they were smart in suggesting that. I went up in front of everyone to the microphone and told everyone who I was supporting. I explained to the crowd that I asked the kids around me who would look better in the glasses and that’s how I chose. What a wonderful event that the tikkun olam group sponsored…I was so impressed by the student’s willingness to give for others. This is a concept that I have found to be foreign in Rwandan culture.

Family Fun Activity

2010-07-16T04:49:00.000-07:00

I’ve been playing hooky from the farm for the past few days…and no one can stop me! I was supposed to go to Kigali yesterday to buy food for the chickens. At the last minute, I decided not to go. I said that it was because to I want Solomon to be able to feel like he can do these things when I leave (which is very true and important) but also I wanted to spend time with the kids at sports day…and I’m very glad for that decision. The girls in my family played basketball…they gave a fierce effort and were very strong.

Before dinner, Micaela and I planned an activity for all of Family Patrice Lumumba. We wanted to combine lots of elements into one activity…we wanted of course fun, group building, team challenge, reflection on our time here, and thinking about the vacation.

The activity started at the mango tree. Each person in the family was given a piece of paper with a mission written on that paper. They had to work together to get from the mango tree to an unknown point for them. 1 person couldn’t see, another could only use 1 leg, someone had to lead the group in song, 1 person had to pick flowers and put them in people's hair, some would not speak but they knew where we should go on the journey, and many more. The journey took us from the mango tree to the football field and then behind the dining hall for a fire.

Some highlights from the journey was when our counselor Tharcille had to have everyone switch shoes. It was very funny to watch. Another highlight was when our mama led us in a traditional Rwandan dance.

At the end was a fire. I asked the group if there is something special in Rwandan culture about fire…one of the girls said that it symbolizes life. Micaela had everyone write a letter to another person in the family for them to open when they are on vacation. The whole activity worked out really well and I think everyone walked away having had a great time…I know I did!

Learning the Lessons

2010-07-14T20:18:00.000-07:00

I’ve been waiting patiently for the arrival of the 1200 chicks. It’s getting frustrating for me that I’m done everything that I can, and they’re still not here! We’re so ready on the farm for them to come. We’re continuing to prepare for their arrival even though I’m uncertain of their arrival at this point. The coop is clean, we have all the food, and all the supplies are bought.

I’ve been doing a lot to prepare for the arrival. I’ve been doing lots of research to learn about raising day old chicks, feed for the birds, disease prevention, lighting, how to tell the health of the flock, and many more things. I’m learning more about raising laying chickens then I ever could have imagined. That being said there’s always more to learn. I learned that in a funny way. It might sounds at this point that there’s lots of frustration with the chicks not arriving…there is but that’s not the point of this post. With each week that they don’t come, I’m learning a little more.

Yesterday I had a seminar with the workers about how to raise the chicks from everything that I have read and researched. Our main chicken man has worked in large chicken coops in the past and has lots of knowledge. During the seminar, he asked a lot of questions and made some great suggestions. I think he knew most of what I taught. After the seminar, he brought over one of the hens. At first I didn’t know what was happening. Then Solomon explained to me that the bird was sick. The chicken man then lifted up the wing of the bird and insisted that I feel. It was very warm. The chicken must have a fever…so sad. Here I am trying to teach this man how to raise chickens but he knows the birds. They have become this children. He knows when they’re hungry or sick just like any good parent should.

It just reinforces for me that you can have the most book knowledge in the world but it means nothing if you don’t have the hands on experience. I guess this whole year is that experience for me.

Lets Dance

2010-07-09T11:35:00.000-07:00

Tonight we had a farm worker party. I was planning on coming back and writting a blog about a few frustrations lately. The experience tonight is only allowing me to write about the awesome party and fun time spent with the farm workers. 3 of the women who work on the farm cooked a delicious meal of rice and veggies! The party started out slow...but when the music started, we were dancing!

There was lots of crazy fun dancing. At first only a few of the workers were dancing, but by the end everyone was up dancing. I danced with all of the workers and had a blast! With the music that we had going, you couldn't help but dance!

I realizing that this is the life of people in Africa. I feel grateful to have such a close connection to these people who are now not only people I work with but my friends!
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Just wanna be kids

2010-07-07T11:50:00.000-07:00

We are no longer family 7 but Patrice Lumumba! The 8 families from the new grade had their house naming ceremonies last Sunday. A few weeks ago each kid in the family was given a person to researc and then the family was to pick the one for their family. My girls picked Patrice Lumumba.

I'e had such a geat time lately with my family (this has been a trend throughou my time here). Every night each family has a family tme where they talk about various topic and have activities. Most of the time they're pretty boring. I'm been enjoing thinking about creative family times. Last Thurday, I led a family time on things you can do when you get sad. Some of the ideas they suggested were to play sports, spend time alone, sing, read a book, and many more. I told them that I like to learn new things. I then taught them how to make paper fortune tellers...and let me tell you...they loved it! One of the other volunteers explained it real well. Many of them didn't get a chance to experience many of the things that other kids and teens get the opportunity to explore. It was fun to watch them construct the fortune tellers. The next day I saw them paying with them and teaching others! I'm excited to come up with other creative activities. I'm thinking of the things that we a big part of my children and teen years to expose these kids to. Next week, I'm working on creating a scavenger hunt for the kids

A Good Day!

2010-07-01T14:16:00.000-07:00

I got up this morning at 4:30…and the crazy part is that I’m still awake at 11pm. I met a group of 5 other of the volunteers. We piled into a land cruiser and headed to Akagera National Park for a chance to see some big game. We arrived at the park, paid the entrance fee, and picked up a guide. We began our journey into the bush. About 10 minutes into the trip, we ran into zebras and giraffes. We were able to get so close and I got some awesome pics! We also saw many birds, buffalo, antelope, deer, baboon, velvel monkies, hippos, and crocodiles. The scenery is what I imagined all of Africa to be like before I arrived. We arrived at a beautiful lake and saw the hippos coming up for air from the water. It was a really cool safari where we got to see many things!

When I returned, I spent the whole afternoon with one of the girls in my family. I also led family time and I thought that it went really well. The topic was things to do when you get sad. I gave the example of being sick for 2 weeks and getting really sad, down, and lonely. I asked the girls to help we find things I can do to improve my mood. They gave some great ideas. In them helping him, I was also hoping that they’d take something way of the activity. I asked a series of questions and asked them to step in the center if it applies to them. I then taught them how to make paper fortune tellers…which they loved!

My Farm Family

2010-06-27T11:56:00.000-07:00

I feel that it’s only appropriate that this blog is written on family. I have not been feeling well these past 2 weeks. Last night, I decided to go to sleep at 6…so then I woke up at 2…at lease I got 8 hours of sleep! At first I tried to go back to sleep, but I just laid there. After a little while I got up and brought my laptop to bed. I got to talk to my sister, both my parents, my brother (for the first time since coming to Rwanda!), and my uncle Marvin! It felt so great to talk to family and hear the tales from home. My uncle Marvin told me that many people in my family were over to his house last Sunday for father’s day…this made me really miss everyone and wishing I was there. I’ve been thinking lots about family recently…mine at home and the different ones that I belong to here.

As I wrote in earlier blogs, family is defined differently here than I studied in school. It seems that everyone and anyone can be family. In the Agahozo Shalom family I find myself in 2 families…Family 7 and the farm worker family. I find myself pulled between my 2 families many of the times. I wish I had lots of time to spend with each. I love them both so much! The family that I want to talk about in this blog is my farm family.

I didn’t realize how much I was a part of this family until a couple of weeks ago when 2 brothers who work on the farm had a sister that died. When it was time for the funeral, Solomon couldn’t find me so I missed it…I was very upset that I missed the funeral. I asked Solomon what I should do since I was not at the funeral and what’s the custom here to honor the family. I told Solomon about the Jewish custom of sitting shiva for a week and honoring them by going to their house. Solomon explained that there’s not the time to sit that long because maybe of the people are very poor and need to return to work as soon as possible. He explained that its customary to visit the family one time. It can be the day of the funeral or in one month. It’s just important to pay your respects. You wish the family patients in getting through their pain…they also drink LOTS of banana beer. Solomon suggested for me to buy the family banana beer and invite over all the workers. He also advised me to get a gift for the mother to help her be patient….we both went to Rubona and bought some fabric for her to make into a skirt.

The house of the family is right across from the village. We arrived and everyone sat around drinking the beer. Solomon kept insisting that I give the gift to the mother when everyone was there. I told him that I wanted to wait until it was private but I finally gave into his insisting (he said that it’s important for everyone to see their boss doing good things…I didn’t realize until this have much everyone looks to me as the big boss…more on this later). I gave a speech (in true Rwandan fashion) and then presented the gift. The mother was very grateful and I have enjoyed to get to know her. This past week the worker whose sister died invited Solomon and I over again because his father-in-law was visiting (they are expecting a baby this week!)
5 days ago the wife of the man who works with the chickens had a baby. I was so excited today when I got to go over and visit!

An Afternoon with Gedeo

2010-06-23T11:05:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, I was talking with someone that works in the village about completing projects. He was saying to me that the kids are only here for 4 years and we want to make those the best years with as many opportunities as possible. I like this mentality…it has helped to build an amazing village with many opportunities for all the kids. The administration is also open to new ideas and likes when different people bring ways to improve the village. This idea has also been a challenge for me when it comes to balancing my life here. There’s so many projects that I want to accomplish while I’m here and I’m enjoying the learning process that I’m going through to gain all this new knowledge.

The problem is that I think that sometimes I’m not feeling well but I continue to work and then realize later that my head has been hurting all day. I know now that I need some rest. I was in Kigali this past weekend and planning to leave early Monday morning and when I woke up, I really didn’t feel well. I decided to stay in Kigali to rest at a friend’s house. It was nice to decide to take the time to just rest. It’s not easy for me, I enjoy to stay busy…I think I take after my father on this one. It’s a good thing I wasn’t in the village because I would surely make my way to the farm like I had been doing for the past 2 weeks while I was sick.

While I was in bed at my friend’s house, we got a visit from Gedeo…a 3 year old little boy that I swear is a 30 year old in the body of this young boy. I have gotten to know Gedeo very well. He usually pays a visit to my friend while I’m there. You never know when we’ll show up. He’ll come at anytime during the day. Gedeo lives differently than most kids that I know his age. He is completely free. We just does what we wants. You see him roaming the streets. My friend even saw him standing outside a neighbor’s party with a big chicken leg in his mouth one day. From what my friend has gathered from talking to him (and once you get him talking, he just doesn’t stop) he comes from a very poor family. His mother has told him that his father is in jail. While most kids his age in the US would be taking a nap, he is roaming the streets looking for food or something to use as a toy. Whenever I see him, I always insist that we give him a bath. My friend usually gives him something to eat. He told us that the only time that he ever gets milk is when he comes over…I think it’s one of the reasons he loves to come and the fact that he is taken care of.

There are many kids here with the same story as Gedeo…it’s very sad to see firsthand. What makes us want to help him when there are many kids in his situation? This is very easy, he’s a special kid. Whenever he’s over he’ll sit and talk to you for hours…about anything. When I say anything, I mean anything. My friend had a conversation with him about the upcoming elections and thoughts about Rwanda. Each day he comes with his aspirations for the future and his current thoughts. When he came to visit yesterday, he told us that he got a job being a security guard for the neighbor’s car. He promised to buy my friend a Primus (my friend’s favorite beer…my friend had no idea how he knew he liked Primus) with his first paycheck. We also get crazy stories from him that can go on for hours. I always tell my friend that he’s changing this boy’s life. He has become his friend, has taught him to say thank you, and washes him up.

Meeting kids like Gedeo really puts life into perspective and helps me to appreciate how I was raised.

A Weekend of Camping

2010-06-16T21:19:00.000-07:00

I love camping and it had been a long time since I went. I enjoy the whole process of it especially in a new place. I like the setting up of the tent, building a fire, cooking, hiking, and waking up in the morning to see a great view. On this trip, I was not let down on any of these. There was a long discussion on where we would go and finally we decided to go to Byumba in the north, about 50km from the Uganda border. I went with 4 of my good friends here…one of them has a car which makes travel much easier. We all packed into the German car and headed for the hills of Byumba. As we got closer, you could feel the temperature drop and the hills getting steeper. On our ride there, we stopped along the way to admire the views…it was so beautiful. We stopped in the town before finding our sleeping site to get some more food. I was excited when we walked into one of the stores and they were selling popcorn. As we were walking back to the car, it began to rain…

As it was raining, we drove around trying to find a place to set up camp. I got worried because our plan was to use fire wood to cook and setting up camp in the rain is no fun. I fell asleep and after about an hour, we stopped. I stepped out of the car and got a little worried again. This area was very hilly so I was just imagining sleeping up a hill. We finally found a great spot and it felt like the whole community came over…at one time I looked around and counted close to 40 kids looking on with wide eyes. We began to set up camp and the rains stopped. Cooking started. This was uncomfortable. Surrounding us were many children that you could tell were very hungry and here we were cooking a good meal. It got dark and the children began to leave. We ate our delicious meal and then crawled into one of the tents for a night of talking.
We woke up at day light and all the kids gravitated back to our camp. Our spot was so beautiful in the morning light. 2 of my friends took the 1 hour round trip journey to get water. It was so steep and I couldn’t believe that these people have to make this journey everyday.

We packed up the car and drove a little distance to begin our hike. On our trip, there were only 2 of us that we not Rwandan. As we began our hike, both of us had a long conversation about our frustrations with being foreign and figuring out our role in this poor area. This conversation started because we didn’t know what to do with the fact that we were able to eat 3 good meals and there were people around us that sometimes don’t even get one. It was a very heavy feeling.

The hike was so beautiful. We climbed up the terraced hills and saw many great views.

Ups and Downs

2010-06-14T10:36:00.000-07:00

Some days are just hard…and I guess that’s life
Do you ever have those days where nothing seems to go right? This happens a lot here. Days just don’t go as planned. Being in here adds a whole new meaning to this.

The day before our basketball team played in the regional finals. We have a very talented team. On the way back from the game, the bus hit a cow and flipped. Luckily, no one on the team was seriously injured. We are very grateful for that. These kids have been through so much and it’s hard that life continues to be a challenge.

Many times, people just don’t come to meetings or they’re very late. It’s very common here and everyone sense to do it. I even get in the habit of saying I know they’re going to be late so it’s ok. This drives me crazy…I like to be on time and also others to be on time. You would think that with all that we talk about time management, that things would be a little different. Events get created and cancelled at the last minute…I’m definitely learning to be more flexible. I was supposed to lead night hikes for 2 visiting groups and both were cancelled. It’s hard when you work hard on something and it just doesn’t happen. That life and I’m learning to be flexible.

I’ve also definitely had more highlights that more than make up for all the frustrations. Work successes include finishing installing the irrigation system and getting the chicken business plan approved. I really enjoy being with the workers on the farm. They even give me kinyarwanda lessons which always turn into everyone laughing. We got new hats for all the workers. It was one of the best moments. They were sooooo happy...they still continue to wear them everyday.

There are 2 new farm volunteers that are here for a short time. They are a big help with the cows. One of the workers got married while I was in Israel. I was very sad to miss the wedding because I hear they turn into fun parties. I decided to go to visit his family. He lives over an hour away from the village and has to walk to and from work each day. The views along the way are incredible though. It was fun to meet this wife and child. I feel like I really get to know them when I meet their familes.

There are so many highlights...many more to come!

Pictures!!!!!!!

2010-06-09T10:26:00.000-07:00

I have posted some new pictures from my birthday and a visit with my family. You can also see more pictures at picasaweb.google.com/amyprice33.

Finishing the 10K at the Kigali Marathon:

A Day in Kigali

2010-05-27T01:35:00.000-07:00

A day in Kigali...is finally over...sigh

Today started out as any other day, very early. Lately I have been waking up naturally around 5:30. Solomon and I caught a ride to Kigali today at 6am on an escapade to buy supplies for the arrival of more chickens on the farm. One of the best things about getting up early is that you get to see the sun rise over the Rwandan hills. The past few mornings, the sun has also been joined by a thick fog. We hopped into the car and headed to Kigali. Our first stop was the bank. We got there an hour before opening. I didn’t eat anything and was hungry. Solomon asked a few people where we could go to get breakfast. The only places they mentioned were hotels. I kept telling Solomon to tell the person that we want the cheap Rwandan places and not the fancy muzungu places. We finally found a place and got money from the place.

Our first visit was to BrasAfric to get a quote for a grinding machine to help in making the chicken food. We got on the back of a moto taxi. Before we got on I asked Solomon if the drivers know where the place is located. Everyone ensured me that they know where it is located. An hour later we were still searching for the place. Our search took us past the Canadian Embassy…a good 3km from the actual location. Everyone we meet thought they knew…this is very common in Rwanda where people say yes and they really have no clue. I finally got the number of someone who works there and he pointed me in the right direction. We actually past the place on our initial moto ride. Solomon and I decided to split up in order to get everything done. I went to BrasAfric and Solomon took all the sacs that we brought to the wood market to get filled with wood chips for the floor of the chicken house.

From the moment I stepped into BrasAfric, I was appalled by the lack of customer service. The lady at the front spoke English real well and was part of the department I was buying in but didn’t know anything about the product. They brought out the technician who was the only friendly and nice person in the whole place. He showed me the machine but said we need to go to a different store of theirs for the motor. I think the lady was happy to get rid of me but I’m not sure what I did to make her mad. When we got to the other store, the grinder were on display but broken with dents….sure makes you want to buy them…right? The technician said that we could buy one of the broken machines and then he’ll fix it. If we’re paying that much money, not sure I want to buy a broken machine. I did enjoy hanging out with the technician. We was impressed with my use of Kinyarwanda. When the second store didn’t have what we needed, it was back to the first store. Another women came in that was ruder than the first lady. I asked for some information on 2 machines that looked very similar to me but were very different prices. No one in the store could tell me the differences. I asked for the proforma invoice which states the price and they refused to give me one. They said I must buy and then they can tell me the price. I kept telling them how can I buy it, if I don’t know the price? Finally the man who I talked with on the phone arrived to help save a little credibility for the place. This man even gave me a ride to town and apologized for the way I was treated by those ladies. He says that it happens to many customers and many complain about them. How can a company keep employees like that? Especially in Rwanda where it’s difficult to find jobs. I went to another agro machinery store called Tasha. It was a much better experience with a much better product. They had no trouble giving me the proforma invoice. So, which company do you think I’ll go with?

I met back up with Solomon and we headed to a place to buy water drinkers. They were all out and insisted there were no places to find them (except for 1 grocery store) in all of Kigali. I heard this story from many of my endeavors to Kigali. There are places to find everything that you need. ..the challenging part is just finding those places. Next we went to the place where we’re buying the heaters to give them an advance. It’s not as easy here as going to a place to buy the heaters. They actually have to make them from scrap metal.

Our next adventure took us to Nyabigogo. We called the truck driver and he said that he would meet us in 30 min. We decided to visit a friend of ours who owns a seed store. He was not there but the people in the store told us where to get the water drinkers! An hour later, the truck driver was not where he told us he’d meet us. We called him and he said that he was too busy to come even though we called him the day before and told us he was on the way. He said that he’d send a friend that never showed. We finally found one. We were at the store were we buy ingredient to make chicken food. I asked all the questions to know when the prices are high and low. It was very helpful but different from what others told me. I guess I should have just asked the seller to begin with.

Next we went to our house in Kigali to pick up luggage from the group visiting from Tuffs University. We went back to the wood market to get our sacs of wood chips. I was bombarded by 20 Rwandan women shouting, muzungo…hello…give me money. It was too overwhelming and annoying. I even called a Rwandan friend to ask how to say, leave me alone. I saw a lady who is related to someone at my village and I was relieved to go sit with her. At the wood market we went to buy a scale and wire. I think I taught these men a lesson…don’t sell someone a scale who is also buying something by the kg. You buy wire by the kg and they gave us 5kg. I told them I want to test out the scale and weight the wire. I found they were giving us only 4.5kg! Don’t think they’ll try that trick again. I even tried to weigh Solomon and everyone was laughing.

Finally it was back to the village after a very long day. When we arrived, we were greeted by all the farm workers cheering. It was a great arrival. The workers were singing and dancing as we drove up. It was already 1.5hr after they usually leave. Some climbed into the truck and began to unload. There were close to 100 sacs. They all got into an assembly line to put the sacs into storage. I even got into the line and they began to cheer even louder. Boy to really love interacting with the farm workers.

Life is Like Fruit

2010-05-25T06:11:00.000-07:00

You know you’ve worked on a farm too long when…this is not some stupid joke. I started to think about my time here in fruit metaphors and compare the kids to the chickens. I will explain. I love fruit and I consume lots of fruit in Rwanda. It’s all so delicious and cheap. The only sad part is that the fruit goes in and out of season. When I arrived, one of my favorite fruits was in season…the mango! I would go on walks to find all the mango trees above the farm and consume many of these delicious fruits. That being said, my arrival and being of my time here is the mango period. In the beginning my time here was very sweet and exciting. The next and current phase would be the guava (I’m actually eating one as I write this). I never had a guava until coming here. It’s definitely something that’s still new and exciting with some buts. The first time I had it was when I went a walk with the cows around the village. One of the farm workers introduced me. When I was first trying it, I had no idea what this fruit could be but was told to pick the large green ones. I was then told to use my teeth to take of the green outside and then just to eat the inside. The outside was very bitter but I enjoyed the inside. I later learned that if you wait, then the outside turns yellow and edible….and so delicious! With this fruit I’m learning patience and with time you can learn all how and where to get what you need. It has taken me these 4 months to get a better understanding about life here. There are also many bitter and sweet moments that take me on a roller coaster of many emotions. With time I’m even learning from those bitter moments. I wonder which fruit will be next!

My Piece of Art

2010-05-13T02:25:00.000-07:00

The views in the village are incredible. My favorite view in the village is the view from the school. I enjoy standing on this bench that surrounds the flag pole and looking out into the distance. From there one can see the entire village, 2 lakes in the distance, and a beautiful mural. The mural was a project of one of the volunteers from last year. She had all the students involved in the painting of the mural. The colors are vivid and it's a great addition to the village.

I can imaging how amazing if felt for that volunteer that she had worked so hard and contributed a beautiful piece of artwork to the village. It's a challenge for the volunteers. We come all this way to hopefully have a positive impact on the village and contribute something to the success. In the day-day craziness of life here, it's sometimes hard to remember. Sometimes it's hard to feel that you are making a difference. I keep saying that sometimes I;m jealous of the volunteer who worked on the artwork. She has such a beautiful reminder of her hard work. I had a real sense of satisfaction in my work yesterday. As you probably know from my other posts, I've been working very hard on bringing hens to the village so that we can have eggs. Yesterday for the first time, each students got on egg from the hens on our farm. That's my piece of artwork for the village. It was soooo exciting...I'd been working very hard on getting hens here. As I ate my egg, I noticed 2 yokes...the Rwandan next to be said it was good luck. It definitely felt good. I have lots of satisfaction in the fact that I helped to bring fmore protein to the kids in the village.

Making News

2010-05-12T04:31:00.000-07:00

Here's an article that I wrote for the village newspaper:

My favorite time at Agahozo is by far Saturday morning around 6am. Most Saturday mornings are the same for me. I wake up just as the sun is rising over the village. It’s amazing to see the vivid and bright colors that are lighting up the sky as a new day is beginning. As I walk to the farm, my thoughts turn to the upcoming morning as I pass the rows of banana trees. One of the best parts of my job is working with the youth of Agahozo on the farm. It took a few weeks in the beginning to ensure that everyone comes on time and is working hard but now it’s great to see most everyone coming on time and really contributing to the growth of the farm. Last term, we saw the arrival of chickens and increasing the amount of land we’re using to farm. Thank you to farm club for everything you do. Your input has helped to make farm time more successful. Next time you’re sitting in the dining hall, think what might have been grown on our farm and how you might have contributed to the growing of that vegetable!

Here's the article that I wrote for my JCC's paper:

What’s the best way for me to spend a Friday night? Currently, it’s drinking tea with my Rwandan family—a group of fifteen teenage girls ranging in age from 15-17. These girls have been through a lot. Most have lost family members to the genocide or AIDS and experienced more trauma in their lives than a person should ever have to endure. Something feels good about talking and dancing together. These fifteen girls have become the light of my life while living in Rwanda.
I arrived in Kigali, Rwanda late on a Tuesday night in January. After being picked up at the airport, I was taken to my home for the next year, the Agahozo Shalom Youth Village (ASYV) located about an hour from the capital city of Kigali. I’m blown away by the fact that I’m actually here (I’m constantly saying, oh my gosh…I’m actually here). It all started last year around Sukkot when a friend of mine came to visit and convinced me to apply for the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee’s Jewish Service Corps year-long fellowship in Rwanda. They needed someone to help manage the farm…I like farming, I like having adventures working, living, and traveling abroad…so why not?
I wonder all the time what brought me to Rwanda. I knew very little about this country and had no real connection except for the idea that after the Holocaust the Jewish people needed others to help them rebuild, so I felt compelled to do the same for Rwandans. That being said, there are many places that I could have gone to help. After being here for 4 months, I’m still not sure why I came. But I do know what compels me to stay in this country known as the heart of Africa, and that has deeply touched my heart.
It’s the stories and relationships that I have created here. It’s the farm worker who doesn’t know any English but always greets me with a warm smile and knows more about the true nature of caring for animals than anyone I know. I didn’t know it would be possible to like someone so much without that person even speaking the same language as I. It’s the long runs with my roommate who helps me understand the complexities that surround this country. It’s the student who is timid and shy, but when you give him a stage and a microphone, his voice brings a whole room to its feet clapping and singing along. It’s the girl in my family that lived in an orphanage prior to ASYV, and is one of the strongest teenage females that I have ever met-- willing to speak her mind and one of the few that has learned to stand up for what she believes. My girls and I even have a special hand shake that has been adapted for when we are on opposite sides of the room. It’s my friend who constantly shares laughs with me and enjoys riding me on the back of his bicycle into town. These are my images of Rwanda.
Since arriving at ASYV I have learned more about the care and raising of chickens than I ever thought possible. I’m working on creating a chicken business that will help to generate income for the village, helping to make the vision of sustainability a reality. I have helped in the birth of 3 cows. I have so many exciting opportunities to learn and grow. It’s pretty incredible. In the village there’s a big emphasis on tikkun olam, the Jewish value of helping to repair the world. The students here are even going out into the local community and making a difference.
You are all invited to come for a visit and see this amazing place; a place that many believe will help strengthen the future of this country. Murkaza neza…you are always welcome! If visiting is not a reality, you’re welcome to follow my adventures at amygoestorwanda.blogspot.com or visit the Agahozo Shalom website at asyv.org.
Shalom,
Amy Price

Learning from the Strength of my Family

2010-05-10T12:12:00.000-07:00

Last Wednesday my family had individual evaluations. We only got through half so we finished the rest of them today. This is a time where we talk about each person in the family and discuss how they’re doing in all aspects of the village. After this process, I gained even more respect for how this village is positively impacting the youth of Rwanda. It’s amazing to be in a place where each individual well being is seen as important and time put into making each student feel confident and important. I learned many of the stories of the girls in my family for the first time. Each one was sadder than the next. We learned stories of abuse, abandonment, extreme poverty, loss, and genocide. Many of them were told the people that they live with are their parents and found out later that their biological parents had died….new issues arise as they begin to question who they are and they these things have happened to them. All of them lost at least one parent and many lost both parents. It’s amazing how strong each of these kids are after having gone through what they have experienced in life. It’s exciting to hear them talk about how hopeful they are for the future. They are strong.

Farm Family of the Week

2010-05-05T02:59:00.001-07:00

This week on the farm we started having the Farm Family of the Week. This is for a family that comes on time (I think this is the hardest part…it’s definitely not part of the culture to be on time), works hard, and also has a house mother or counselor working hard with them. The family that I picked for the first week is the family that I worked with on Saturday. I had so much fun working with them that I felt that they deserved the award. Last night at family time, I presented them with a pineapple and thanked them for their hard work. I began to work with this family because I heard them singing. They seemed to be having a good time so I thought that I’d join them. As we worked, we had a very interesting talk about religion. They know that I’m Jewish and began to ask questions. It was hard for them to believe that I don’t believe the same as they do about Jesus. I also asked them questions. I went to Catholic Mass for the first time last week when we had the ceremony to remember the student that died over the vacation. I learned a lot from them and their thoughts on religion. Many have such a strong and very real faith that I always enjoy conversations like this.

It just so happened that there was also a birthday in the family that night and they had a celebration for her. It was great to be with this family as they celebrated…everyone was so happy and joyous! I got to thinking that for many of these kids coming to Agahozo might be their first time celebrating a birthday with family. The girl who had a birthday started the evening with a very solemn look on her face but began to cry out of happiness when the group began to sing. It made me realize how important it is to have family around to share in happy occasions. I just had my birthday this weekend and missed my family so much. I enjoyed being a part of the celebration.

We have eggs!!!!!

2010-04-30T15:31:00.001-07:00

Today was such an exciting day. I traveled to Kigali last night to go to the bank so today I could be ready for getting all the supplies to make chicken food. Solomon met up with me in Kigali and we went all over the place getting the necessary ingredients…I still learning more about raising chickens than I ever thought possible. There was one point today as I was standing in the back of the truck that we rented for the day and looked out at the busy market…I’m truly in Rwanda was all I could say. I felt like I was experiencing the lives of Rwandans as they went out buying things. It really felt surreal. Travels to buy things in Kigali are definitely some of the most stressful times for me. I never know what kind of adventure and most of the time frustrations I will have…the prices are always changing and things just take longer. I had a family over tonight to help me celebrate my birthday.

I love living here and experiencing all that this journey has to offer but that being said, these past few days have been challenging for me. The transition back to Rwanda from Israel was harder than I expected. It was so easy to be in Israel and here things are just so different. The mindsets are just not the same…things take a lot longer, I feel that things don’t happen unless you look over it yourself and remind people many times, and people will say yes and come to find out later they didn’t mean it…just to name and few. I’m trying to slow myself down and adapt to work in this culture but it’s not always easy. I let it get to more these past few days (and the lack of sleep doesn’t help either). Now that I’m caring for the lives of animals, things become a little more urgent. Guess what…the hens layed the first eggs this week!!!!!!!!!!

In the process of these frustrations, I’m also learning so much. It’s now after midnight and my birthday. I’m 25…that’s so crazy and hard to believe! It’s nice to be able to have transitions like this to think about what the future might bring, things to accomplish, and just about life in general. I definitely want to continue working on my patience for living in a different place and creating a zen so things don’t bother me so much.

I continue to learn small lessons from Solomon. He has such a great trust in people and truly is able to see good in everyone. On the farm, we have 5 teams and each team has a leader. I decided this week to have weekly meetings with the leaders just to check in and see how everything is going. Solomon and I learned from one of them that some of the workers are not working hard. When the leaders say something to the other workers, they say Solomon is not around or you can’t make me work. Solomon told the leaders to tell him when it happens and he will send the worker home for 1 week and when the worker returns we’ll see hard he/she works. Not having a job is definitely good motivation to work hard next time especially since finding a job here is so challenging.

Experiencing all the Ups and Downs

2010-04-30T15:31:00.000-07:00

A Lesson on Strength and Happiness

2010-04-23T14:26:00.000-07:00

While I was in Israel, I had the opportunity to think about my goals for when I return to the village…both personal and professional. I realized that some of my best times in the village come when I get to spend time with the girls in my family.

It was so great to return to the village…it feels so good to be back! It’s also very difficult. One of the kids in the village drowned in a lake over the vacation. It hasn’t been easy but there have been memorials for him. It was also a difficult time for the kids because it was Genocide Awareness Day over the break. Most all of the kids lost family during the genocide.

Last night I went to the house of my family for family time. There were only a few girls at the house and I went into one of the rooms. One of the girls was in bed and I sad on her bed to talk. I asked her about her vacation and she began to tell me her genocide story. I just sat there as her story began to unwind. She was a baby during the genocide. She was one the back of her mother when someone killed her. I was told that if she was a boy, they would have also killed her. She had a brother that was killed. Can you imagine being on the back of your mother while she was killed? Over and over she told me about how confident that she feels...she's definetely one of the strongest person that I have ever met. She began to talk about where she gets her strengh and her desire to make something of her life...it was so inspiring.

2010-04-21T21:22:00.000-07:00

It’s hard to believe that it’s been 3.5yrs since I was last in Israel! I was very excited to return and see many of my friends. I arrived in Israel at 4am and when I left the airport I hopped on a train and went straight to Be’er Sheva…the place where I used to live in Israel. It was wonderful to be there again, it felt as if I had returned home. I have such great memories of being there! My seminar in Jerusalem began on Sunday. It was nice to meet other people on my fellowship that are living in other places around the world. Monday was Yom HaShoa…Holocaust Remembrance Day. We had a great discussion about how to forgive when you have experienced such atrocities. We made some connections to the experience in Rwanda…it was a very interesting conversation…I’m going to write another blog on this soon. After the seminar I spent a day with Gilboa who had my position in Rwanda last year. He took me to the Kibbutz where he grew up. I learned a lot while I was there. I got to ask lots of questions about cows and the technology that they use on the Kibbutz. They have been organic since the 60s. They grow bugs in greenhouses. They sell both good and bad bugs. The good bugs help the organic plants and the bad bugs are food for the good bugs. I also got to go hiking with my friend Amos. We went to this place that has limestone caves.

Seeing great friends and eating LOTS of ice cream…who could ask for more!

At the end of the seminar, they asked each of us to present a story, song, poem, picture, or activity. I took the song that I wrote at our first seminar in December that was in NY and changed the words. It's to the tune of Wagon Wheel. Here's the song:

I’m living in Rwanda the land of 1,000 hills
There are some frustrations but mainly thrills
Reflecting on my time
And thinking my placement is quite right!

I’ve been here for 3 months
Ready for more
Planting the seed and watching it grow
Excited for this adventure

Chorus:
So, I’m going to teach the youth, teach them well
Give them hope, I can tell
Hey, we’ll have a good time
Teach the youth, help them grow
Teach the youth what they want to know
Hey, we’ll have a good time

Comin’ to Rwanda from the USA
Working on the farm all the day
Cultivating and Planting
Growing and Picking

Oh, I work with wonderful kids in Family 7
Hanging out in the house or having dance parties
Also, drinking too much tea
To livin’ the good life in Agahozo

Chorus

Walkin’ round the village, what a wonderful place
Creating big new projects
w/ chickens and cows
Working with Rwandan staff
To riding on Solomon’s bike

And I’ve shed lots of sweat, but it’s been lots of fun
Caring about these children
Is the vision of everyone
Tikkun Olam
Creating the leaders of tomorrow

Chorus

Check this out!!!!

2010-04-10T02:45:00.000-07:00

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/03/31/eveningnews/main6351616.shtml

Click on this link to see a clip from CBS News on the village

Adventures in Addis!!!!

2010-04-09T08:18:00.000-07:00

Sunday was Easter so there were very few things that were open. We went to a church and then to the Addis International Film Festival. We saw the most amazing documentary about Youssou Ndour… a Senegalese singer and percussionist. His story was inspirational. His strong Muslim upbringing and family values inspires his music. It you get a chance, look him up or listen to his music.

The next day we went to museums and out for a traditional Ethiopian meal. Just figuring out the bus system (or I guess in our case, the lack of being able to figure it out) is tiring. The drivers shout out their destinations and you have to listen carefully. People then fight to get on the buses. The first museum we went to was on the Addis Ababa University. It talked about traditional Ethiopian people throughout the lifecycle. It started with childhood and ended with death. I learned lots of interesting things but there was a lot of reading to learn everything. After the museum, Lily and I sat in an outside café and read the Lonely Planet’s history of Ethiopia. Ethiopia has a rich history and is the only African country that wasn’t colonized, a fact that all Ethiopian are proud about. We also learned that the Rastafarian religion originated in Ethiopia from one of the Emperors. We also went to the National Ethiopian Museum. It was nothing special but it houses Lucy who is estimated to be 3.5million years only and one of human’s distant relatives. At night we went to Habasha, an Ethiopian restaurant that has traditional music and dancing. It was a lot of fun and all the honey wine made it even better!

On Tuesday, we went to Entoto Mountain. We had another adventure trying to find the right transportation to reach it. In one day, we were on a total of 7 different buses. On the bus that finally brought was to the mountain, we met a man that said he would show us the area. As we walked up to the top of the mountain we learned that he’s a painter and has an art gallery at the top of the mountain. The gallery was housed in what looked like a large box but when we went inside, we saw beautiful paintings…I was very impressed. He took us to see the view of Addis from the mountain. On the way back to Addis we stopped in Shiro Meda. This is where people come for traditional Ethiopian clothing. I was excited to find a place where women who were firewood carriers make scarves. A woman who carries firewood usually walks around 12-15miles per day and only makes about $12 per month. The project is trying to help these women so I was glad to buy some scarves. Lily was in search of a dress and we went into about 100 stores to find the perfect one. As she went into some of the last stores, I sat down and was offered a beer from some of the store owners and then Lily found her dress! We were both happy!

For our last day, we traveled east of Addis to Debra Zeyit. It’s filled with beautiful lakes. Our waitress from the night before recommended that we go to this resort there. We arrived at the resort in a horse cart. The resort was beautiful, situated on one of the lakes. We walked in and they asked us if we had a membership. I felt that this place was way too fancy for my usually travel. They had a very reasonable day membership that included lunch, kayaking, and swimming in the pool. It was a great last day of our trip. The food was amazing and we got to relax.

Ode to the Sprice Juice

2010-04-08T21:49:00.000-07:00

(Just a note only the most special things in my travels get an ode including toilets and nice people.)

So yummy and delicious….3 and sometimes 4 layers fruit juicy pulp excellence! Each sprice juice master has his own style of making a juice. The classic is a bottom layer of mango, then strawberry, avocado (sometimes the order of strawberry and avocado are reversed…but I like the strawberry under the avocado so you can eat them together), and mango on top. Sometimes the strawberry or avocado are left out...that was a sad sprice. I even had one with a little surprise on the bottom…pineapple! I averaged about 2 a day while in Ethiopia…pure mouth bliss. Check out the picture!

Tour of the Village...check out where I live!

2010-04-08T02:34:00.000-07:00

I wasn't able to post on the internet but I wrote blogs and had the chance to post them today on Passover and part of Ethiopia. I'm going to add more stories and pictures from Ethiopia. I landed in Israel today!!!!!

I also put my a slideside of the village. Check out Tour of the Village in the picture area. You can click on the picture and it will tell you what it is...now you can see where I live!

Arrival in Ethiopia

2010-04-08T01:28:00.000-07:00

I arrived in Addis Ababa late Friday night. It was awesome to meet Joy who’s another JDC volunteer working in Ethiopia. The next working we got up and went for breakfast at a café close to her house. That’s where I fell in love…with an amazing drink that is. It’s a juice that has 4 layers, 2 of mango, 1 of strawberry, and 1 of avocado. I’m not going to talk about it too much because there will be a whole blog devoted to its deliciousness! After the café, I visited one of the places where Joy works and one of the JDC’s projects in Ethiopia, the Mother Theresa Clinic. When we arrived I got a tour of the facility. There were many people there of all ages with a variety of sicknesses. I was impressed with the general cleanliness of the place and attitudes of the people. After the clinic I went on a driving tour of Addis with the JDC’s driver. I knew very, very little of the history and culture of Ethiopia. It was awesome to have my own personal tour and chance to ask lots of questions. It’s currently a holiday here. It’s Easter and people here go all out for the celebration. People here do not eat meat for the 55 days leading up to the holiday. Night is the first time that they are able to eat meat. I saw the funniest sight as 40 people were pushing and shouting as they we trying to buy a live chicken out of the back of a truck. I saw many statues commemorating battles and past kings. I went to a touristy area and walked into the shops. Outside the stores there were many young kids selling gum. I enjoyed seeing this and was happy to give them 5birr for the gum. There are so many kids begging on the streets here and it’s nice to see some learning to work hard for money and not to beg. Most of the stores had grass all over the floor and I got confused by this. I found out that’s it’s a traditional Easter decoration. There were so many cows just walking on the street that were being sold for the holiday. I also saw many sheep. They were not there to be sold; they are the most environmentally friendly lawn-mowers! What an awesome sight to see! The man that I was with spoke wonderful English and I learned a lot about the country and Addis.

At night I went out for traditional Ethiopian food. I have to say though that I’m not a fan of injara, the traditional spongy soft flat bread. I did really enjoy the other food…and of course I bought another sprite juice. After dinner I went to a hotel to check my email. I was getting ready to leave and they invited me to stay for a traditional coffee ceremony which is part of the Easter celebration. They told me it would start in 20 minutes and in true African fashion it began over an hour later. It was ok though, I was entertained by a man from Japan doing card tricks and talking with workers at the hotel. For the ceremony incents were burned, they roasted the coffee beans over a small fire, and we ate lots of popcorn! From talking with someone the ceremony seemed like a way to bring people together. People invite other into their homes for the ceremony and visit many friends at their homes to take part in the ceremony.

When I arrived back at the house, Lily had arrived…Happy Birthday Lily!!!!!

Sometimes I Just Want to be Invisible!

2010-04-08T01:27:00.001-07:00

Before I left for my trip, Solomon and I had dinner together in Rubona. I was tired after as I walked home. I was walking slowly with my head down thinking about my upcoming trip when I heard loud squeaky voices yelling….hello, hello, hello! I turned around and saw 3 young girls around 10 years old running after me. They ran up to me and began talking to me in all the English that they know. I enjoy these encounters but they become exhausting. I can’t go anywhere in Rwanda without being shouted at. Sometimes I just want to be invisible. I wish that I could take Harry Potter’s invisible cloak and just drape it over myself whenever I just didn’t want to be seen. I think one of the reasons that I’m most looking forward to Israel is the ability to just blend in and become invisible in a crowd. I think that it’s official…I never want to be famous…I don’t want people always watching me.

Chag Pesach Sameach!

2010-04-08T01:24:00.000-07:00

Pesach is one of my favorite Jewish holidays for many reasons….for the traditions, emphasis on learning, and the food. This year had all of those aspects which made for a wonderful celebration.

I arrived in Kigali on Friday and went to a presentation that one of my friends worked on for work. He was doing research on child headed households. I arrived a little late but had the opportunity to hear testimonies from some people. The one that touched my heart the most was this 14 year old who looked in his 20s who was responsible for 6 kids…he’s a kid himself and having to watch over others.

On Sunday afternoon we began cooking. It was fun hanging out with Lily, Mara, and Suzie as we cooked. They did a wonderful job shopping and preparing for the event. We were cooking for 30 people with no oven, just a 2 burner stove, and a small propane camping stove. Every task was organized and determined what would be cooked at which time. Most of the cooking was done on Monday afternoon. I cooked stir fry, a sweet carrot dish, and cabbage salad.

The seder was wonderful. We had such a diverse group of people. We had a visiting family from NYC (they helped to give the sedar a warm family feeling), an Israeli student from U of Michigan and 3 of her friends, 4 Israelis living in Kigali, a Jewish friend from Canada, a Jewish man from Holland, 3 of my non-Jewish friends in Kigali, an Israeli scholar, and the volunteers from the village. Mara created a wonderful Haggadah and the sedar also included traditions from different people’s families. The sedar had such a warm feeling and I enjoyed it very much! The food was also delicious and the wine flowing.

We also had a wonderful sedar the second night. It was just a few of the volunteers and the family. We drank a little wine and did some of the main aspects of the sedar. Someone began to ask questions about the 4 children and we spent the rest of our time in a great discussion.

To next year in Jerusalem….

Don't Drink the Banana Beer

2010-03-25T20:13:00.000-07:00

I have a philosophy in life that one must work hard and then play hard. For me, both are equally. You can see how I live my life that I take this to heart. I also apply this idea when I supervise others...everyone must have the opprtunity to celebrate successes.

I decided it was time to have a celebration with the farm workers for all their hard work and suggested it to Solomon. I said that everyone could come to my house for tea and some food. Solomon laughed at me as he usually does and said that the workers are grown men. He then suggested that we have a party in Rubona with beer, food, and music...I agreed that it was a good idea! On Tuesday morning at around 8 Solomon and I road to Rubona on our "pick-up." It's our bike that lately breaks everytime we ride. Solomon pedals and I sit on the back. When we were in Rubona we went to a few different places to sample the local banana beer. We even saw some people make it...after seeing it I should have known not to drink.

The party was on Wednesday and boy was it a party. The first great thing was that it rained after too long without...being on a farm, that was definitely worth celebrating! The rain flooded Solomon's house so we moved the party to a woman's house in town. Most all of the workers came. The party started slow as people sipped on fanta and banana beer. I insisted to Solomon that he bring his music. He began by playing slower Christain music and then the Rwandan hip-hop came one (which I love). I got up to dance and some of the workers followed. Those that didn't dance enjoyed laughing at me and the others dancing. We even had a large group of kids in the doorway and windows enjoying watching the celebration.

The night was AWESOME!!!! I had a great time just chilling with everyone. I realized as I sat there that these are the experiences that will make my time in Rwanda. At the end there were many speaches (you can't have a celebration in Rwanda without them!) I even spoke and told everyone that when I return from vacation that they must help me to learn kinyarwanda...the next speach I give will be done all in kinyarwanda.

I had some of the banana beer at the party and I'm still feeling it's affects 2 days after. My tummy does not like it. A lesson learned but worth it for the fun night!

Experiencing the Roller Coaster

2010-03-23T10:27:00.000-07:00

I just went to check my posts and I couldn't believe how long it has been since I wrote a post...too long! There are so many things that have been happening not to write. I have though written a list of topics that I want to blog about so hopefully soon you will be more about life here. Next week I'm headed to Ethiopia and Israel so there are many adventures ahead!

This night's post needs to be written about one of the things that has been distracting me from writing in my blog...a book. I got the book from the library here and it was recommended to me by one of the volunteers. It's called a A Fine Balance and it's a 600 page book depicting life of 2 tailors in 21st century India. It portrayed the ups and downs of the life of these 2 men and the people who interact with them. It was a roller coaster ride for them. It seems to be fitting for me to be reading this book, as I'm experiencing my own ride. It's nice to ride someone else's train...even if it's fiction. It helps to put life in perspective. It's a bit heavy and I'm feeling its affects after finishing the read.

I tried to explain the book to one of my close Rwandan friends and all he could say was that would never happen. I tried to explain that it was historical fiction and similar things happened to many people during that time in Africa. He was making fun of me for taking the book so seriously...it bothered me at the time and I couldn't figure out why. I finally realized why his comments affected me as they did. My friend has also experienced many hardships in life from the genocide. He had to flee his home during the genocide. I've only learned parts of his story. From what I learned, his father and 2 sibling died in the conflict. He even returned home to find his home destroyed. I'm sure there are many books written about the genocide that people read and say that it could never happen. I even hear and read storied and think to myself there's no way anything like that could ever happen...people are just not that cruel. Everyone has their own history...some are not always as easy as others.

I'm learning first hand accounts of the hardships of living here. It's part of my roller coaster ride. It's hard when workers on the farm come up to me and ask for money not because they want something but because if they don't have the money, they won't eat that day. It's hard knowing that reality from people who I not only work with but have become my friends and people that I spend my day working and laughing with. The reality is not always easy. It's hard to describe accept for being heavy. Sometimes I wish the weight would lighten. It does fluctuate as I'm embarking on the ride. There have also been many ups on my ride here which help to balance the heaviness and loneliness that's inevitable from living somewhere so far from home. I love being here and experiencing everything.

Chicken Expert...who would have thought?

2010-03-11T21:56:00.000-08:00

It's been awhile since I have posted on the blog. I've been very busy and time seems to fly. I have many projects on the farm. The main projects that I’m devoting my time to are installing an irrigation system, creating a chicken business, and finding and cultivating an area for the 16 families to have their own area to farm. The chicken business is the project that will generate a lot of money for the village. I’m learning more about chickens then I ever thought possible. Who knew that I would go to Rwanda and return an expert on raising chickens…I sure didn’t! I’m creating a business plan and marketing materials for the business. Right now the plan is to bring 2,400-3,000 birds…I’m going to have lots of babies now. I’ve been meeting with an Israeli man in Kigali and learning the whole process of raising hens. We also had some visitors come two days ago that are creating a hens laying egg business with about 10,000 chickens. These men work for Tyson Chicken and an NGO called Bridge to Rwanda. The man from Tyson gave me so much useful information. I learned that the most important way to know the health of the flock is by the uniformity of the size of the birds. You also have to have the same person caring for them or they can get depressed. They are going to be such a great contact and opportunity for me to learn more. I showed them around the village…they were so impressed and it made me realize how special this place is…it’s nice to have people come to remind me.

The man who cares for the chickens is one of my favorite workers to interact with on the farm. He’s an older man that usually wears shirts that are practically down to his knees. I’ve never admired someone so much that I don’t even speak the same language. You can tell that he hasn’t had the easiest life but he’s one of the sweetest people. As I said, we don’t speak the same language but I enjoy conversing with him through hand gesters, grunts, and a little Kinyarwanda. I’ve gotten good at guessing what people are saying based on the context. He works more hours than anyone on the farm. He spends lots of the day collecting grass for the hens. There’s a special kind here that helps to make the yoke yellow (the Rwandans dislike what they call “modern” chickens which usually have white yokes but by giving the grass, they will turn yellow). I love watching him bring in the grass. The hens follow him around until he gives them the grass.

Last night all the volunteers had a meeting at the director’s house. He said, “You know Amy that you have the best job in the village.” I totally agree!

Crazy Foreigner

2010-03-03T10:27:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I wonder how things actually get done around here. I went to a meeting today and after everyone was at least 15 minutes late, people talked more about the process of the meeting instead of the topic at hand. Also whenever I go to Kigali on business a 3 hour trip…turns into 5 or 6. I’m learning that’s just how it is around here. I’m learning how not to get frustrated when things don’t happen as you hope or plan.

A few days ago Solomon and I were talking. He asked how long I will be here for and I said around 1 year. He told me that I need to stay 10 years because who is he going to laugh at if I’m gone. I was very touched by his question and response. We do laugh a lot together and have a great time. I get into rants sometimes on how things should be here or when the persistent Israeli inside of me comes out and all he does is laugh. I have my share of laughs at/with him also. There’s one instance that I wish he was there for…I even had to laugh at myself…

I’ve been trying for over 2 weeks to get sawdust for the floor of the chicken coop. We bought all of our furniture from a company in Kigali and they agreed to provide with the sawdust from the making of furniture. All we need to do is bring the sacs and they will fill them for us. I sent others to do it and it never seemed to happen. I decided to take matters into my own hands. First I went to bring the sacs and it was very easy to make happen. Others tried before and it wasn’t so easy. One of the drivers tried to pick up the filled sacs and they wouldn’t let him get them (still not really sure why not). Again I had to go to Kigali to get them. I walked into the building and was greeted by someone who worked there. I told him about the sacs and he said to wait that he would get a manager. After a few minutes I went back up to him and said that I know where to go and it I could just walk in. He said sure and I headed in. I got many stares as I walked past many workers. I walked into the area with the wood and found the sacs. I looked around aimlessly to find the man that I know speaks English. I know the workers must have been thinking who is this crazy foreigner. I asked where we should bring the car to pick them up. I was told to drive around to the back. After arriving to the back, I asked where the area with the wood was located. They looked at me as if I was crazy. They asked who I spoke to inside. I told them that I was just inside and told to drive around here. I got many blank stares. I decided again to take matters into my own hand and just walked in (normally I would not do this, but I knew I was supposed to be there). After a few minutes the security guard realized to just walked in and began to follow me. I went to get the sacs and he realized everything was okay. I was a funny scene though. After loading up the 11 full sacs, the guard asked for amafuranga (one of the few Kinyarwanda words that I know) which means money. I laughed and said oya amafuranga (no money!) and I finally got the sacs! I told Solomon the story and I course be enjoyed a good laugh.

Lessons on How to Eat Bread

2010-02-28T18:43:00.000-08:00

As much as I enjoy being around everyone in the village, it's very important for me to have friends outside of the village. Kigali is an hour away...I do have friends there but it's far and I can only get there about 2 times a month. Rubona is the closest village with place to buy things. It reminds me of a South Georgia flea market with no paved roads and bicycles instead of cars. On Tuesday and Friday center of Rubona is bustling with people buying goods at the market and the other days it looks like a ghost town expect for the bike shop and local bar where you're always sure to find people. It's hard to describe...it's like no place I've ever seenbefore. I'm going to take pictures and give a tour of Rubona. I have come to love the little village.

We had a sick mother cow on the farm because she had a hard labor. There was a vet that came to check on her. One day the vet brought someone that was learning to be a vet. He's just a year older than me and we became friends. He was one of the only English speakers and helped to fill me in on what was happening with the cow. I enjoyed speaking with him and we made plans for me to visit him at his home in Rubona.

Last weekend I visited him and I really enjoyed meeting his family. There house is behind the market and next to the bicycle parking lot. He lives with his aunt, uncle, and their family of 4 children. There's also another boy that lives with them who is 21 and speaks english very well. He told me that his family is very poor and came to live with this family because the mother love Jesus. This was his words and I found it funny the way that he said it. I think it's wonderful how giving this family is to him. I stayed at there home for a few hours and enjoyed speaking with them. I even got delicious bread and fanta. It was so awkward when they brought out the bread. 3 pieces of bread were brought out and 1 fork. I took a piece of bread and then the mama through tranlation asked why I didn't wash my hands. I didn't know what to say or do...I finally said that I had washed them at home. Everyone else was using their hands, why couldn't I? The father came in a little later and I learned that he's a farmer and grows many things. When I heard this through translation, I said oh that's cool, he's a farmer just like me! I think they were very surprised and laughed. We decided that we'd visit each others farm. They asked about computers and wondered if I would teach them, we made plans to have a lesson the next weekend.

I arrived at their home on Saturday for a computer lesson...how do you teach computers to someone who has never used one? We started with the basics on turning it off and on. I'm a tough teacher and even gave them homework. They have to study the different keys, where they are located, and their function. I realized after that I would even have a problem with this assignment. I was even given the delicious bread again and banana juice (it was my first time having it...and it was tasty!) After the week before, I was not sure how to eat the bread. The mama finally brought out a small bag that I was to use as a glove to eat the bread. Out of the 2 other people, one used his hands and the other used a fork. The different ways to eat the bread made me laugh.

I really enjoy my time with the family and look forward to seeing them again soon! I have many families in Rwanda...that's one of the wonderful things about this country, you always have family around. At school I studied child and family development and one of my classes was on families. In the class we tried to define what a family is and I think this country is making me redefine what is family.

1st Rwandan Cowgirl

2010-02-25T20:18:00.000-08:00

I want to get a sense of what is happening on the farm and the roles of all the workers. I decided that I would take a day to shadow different workers. Today I began with the cows. I arrived to the farm around 6 and got to work. My first task was to milk the cows. The cow man in the village is so fast at milking. I’ve never seen someone milk the way the he does. As he crouches next to the cow, he looks so compact. I don’t think I could get that low. He puts the bucket between his legs and used both hands. It was my turn next. I held the bucket in one hand and milked with other. I’m left handed and was milking with my left hand. The men kept telling me to switch hands. I tried to explain that I use my left hand. It was hard at first. I’m used to milking goats not cows and began to milk the way to do goats. The cow man said that I could come again and in a few days I’d be great.

Next it was time to take the cows for a walk. They get walked around the perimeter of the village which is 6km. We took 6 grown cows and 2 of the babies with us. I went with one of the workers who is trying very hard to learn English. He also asked me if girls in America work with cows. I told him that a girl can work with cows if she chooses. He seemed surprised (I love to surprise and shock the workers, there are many thoughts here of who does what, I like to think that I’m changing some of those perceptions). I enjoyed the walk…especially when we reached a certain point that has many fruit trees. I (along with the cows) ate many, many mangos. I didn’t think anyone/thing could eat as many mangos as me…I think the cows win. I even ate guava for the first time. I learned all the places with fruit trees that others do not know about. When I brought back many avocados everyone began asking where to get them. I think I’m keep them as my secret.

Ode to the Unexpected

2010-02-22T19:06:00.000-08:00

I get asked from many Rwandans that I meet what's the difference between Rwanda and the United States...there are MANY differences. The biggest one that I keep coming back to is the difference in the way people view time. Things just don't happen when you want or expect them to happen. I've experienced this on numerous occasions and I'm becoming the queen of patience. But lately I'm been surprised. It's so incredible when people surprise you. I've been thinking about those little things that people do that can change your day around. Last week, I was trying for many days to get a driver to take stones from the school to the farm so that we can finish the second chicken coop. I'm not allowed to drive...sometimes it would make my life so much easier if I could just drive in the village. Finally we agreed on Saturday. On Friday we came to my house and was ready to drive! I was shocked and so happy that I didn't have to keep chasing him down. It felt good to have confidence that even with the way they view time, people surprise you and things happen. Today I walked into lunch late (when you come in late, it's hard to find a plate and food). I was dreading having to run around to find a plate. I walked in and someone that I didn't even know just handed me a plate. They were both very small things that made my day.

Respecting Hard Work

2010-02-17T04:59:00.000-08:00

I woke up this morning at the normal time and headed to the farm. Solomon came late and before he arrived, the workers broke out in a singing and dance party. I had so much fun with the workers today. It began to rain (the workers do not work in the rain, I was told tonight that it’s because most only have one pair of clothes so if they get wet on Tuesday then the rest of the week they have wet clothes). We headed inside to crack open the shells of peanuts and get the get the peanuts out. I ended up staying inside with about 20 workers for about 2 hours. I was so awesome just hang out with them as we worked. They are starting to open up to me (well, as much as they can through the one good English speaker). They were singing and having a great time. This is why I love to travel, you meet such interesting people and get insight into their lives.

One of the main reasons that I love farming is that working hard truly pays off and you get to see the fruits of your labor. Hard working is one of the characteristics that I value most in people. In Rwandan culture people have defined roles. For example if you are a truck driver, you would never help to load the truck. This observation was explained to the volunteers at our training in New York before coming to Rwanda. The example that was given was that for one of the homes, the person that did the concrete floors was admiring his work but also puzzled when one of the staff walked past. The staff person asked what the problem was and the person replied it’s a shame that no one installed the pipes in the flooring. It was not that worker's place to do the job of another or to check up on why it was not done. He had a job and carried it out.

I also witnessed an example of this. In Rwanda you show respect for someone when you shake their hand by placing your left hand by your elbow. Some of the farm workers and I were unloading pineapple plants at the farm while some of the counselors were sitting in the car. I couldn’t believe that they weren’t helping. It would have made the process much faster but that’s not their role. One of the counselors gets out of the car and is greeted by one of the workers in the way you do for someone you want to respect. That counselor then proceeded to tell us to work faster because he wanted to leave. This whole interaction was frustrating on many levels. How could the worker (who was working very hard) show respect for someone who was pushing him to work faster while he was just sitting there? In Rwandan society he was someone that the worker should show respect for. The counselor asked us to work faster again so I grabbed his hand and brought him over to where we were unloading and instructed him to work. He began to complain that he might get dirty.

I witnessed a house mother drop something. She was sitting next to one of the students and hit that person on the knee with the notebook in her hand. The student then leaned down to pick up the object. I asked one of the staff about this. This is very common they said. It's not the house mother's role, she has the kids to do it for her. I was also told that in the beginning, house mothers and counselors had the students do their laundry. It was explained to me that the kids are there so why should they do it was the attitude of the house mothers and counselors. It has gotten much better since the beginning.

Who should be respected and how do you show that? It’s something that I have been thinking about for a few days. Does respect come from where you were born or how you act? Most of the workers shake my hand in the respectful way because I’m their supervisor and from another place. I hope they also do this for the way I treat them and the relationship that we’ve created.

Another Week in Rwanda

2010-02-15T03:21:00.000-08:00

So much happened last week that I want to talk about. The electricity has been out most days and I’m so busy on the farm and in the village which has put me behind on my blogging.

Last Saturday night I ate meat for the first time in 4 and a half years. I was not expecting to do it. I went on a long run with one of my roommates. We finished our run at the local bar and ordered drinks. The next thing I know is that they bring brochettes (goat meat). My two friends invite me to taste and I explain that I do not eat meat. They ask me why and I explain that I’m not against eating meat just against the industry in the states. We begin to talk about how this meat is raised (it was raised by a family down the road with the goat eating grasses) and I decide to have a bite…and I do have to say that it was delicious. I went to the same bar again Friday night with Solomon and again ate the meat. It’s still hard for me to believe that I ate it.

I’m learning so much about raising livestock and got to take part in my first birthing of a cow. Just as I was about to leave for lunch on Thursday, I was told that one of the cows was about to have a baby. I was excited for the opportunity to take part and try to help as much as possible. I learned how to tell that a cow is about to have a baby…I’m gaining all this very useful knowledge…lol. We have a new healthy baby boy. The farm workers asked me if it was my first time taking part in a birth…I said yes…and remembered to say the shechechyanu. I tried to explain it to the workers but I don’t think they understood when I began to speak in a funny language.

Saturday was filled with joy and sorrow. I organized a ceremony for the harvest of the first pineapple that was to take place on Saturday. I also bought 700 new pineapple plants to be planted by the students for the occasion. Saturday began as any other day. I got up at 6:10 and headed to the farm to prepare for the kids beginning to work at 7. When I arrived I soon learned from one of the workers (he doesn’t speak any English so the interaction was done in grunts and hand gesters) that another cow was going to have a baby. This was to be the third cow born in a week. The baby was coming out just as the kids began to arrive. Things became hectic as I tried to assist with the birth and direct 220 kids to where they were working. (There had been a problem with everyone arriving very late so I told the counselors and house mothers that if their whole family comes on time that everyone would get a treat from the farm. This week we had 4 families that actually came on time!) Many kids began to assist with the birth and the milking of the other cows (the cow man was unable to milk the other cows so the kids just did it, they didn’t even need any direction in what to do…I realized that this is a big difference with the kids here and from the states…I couldn’t imagine if people from my high school were expected to milk cows). After a little while the cow began to have problems. The baby was just too big to come out. A specialist and vet were called to come. Just as the ceremony was about to begin, we all heard that the baby cow did not make it and that the mom would have to have surgery. The happiness of harvesting the first pineapple was jaded by our loss. The ceremony still went great with 5 pineapples being harvested…and in Rwandan tradition there were many speeches. The kids from last year planted the pineapple so it was nice that they were then able to harvest the fruits of their labor.

It was sad and hard to lose a cow. Everyone was very supportive. It was a long week and I was ready to get away from the village. I traveled to Kigali to meet up with my friends there. They introduced me to hashing. Hashing is a social group that goes on runs and hikes. They say they are a drinking group with a running problem. I got initiated into the group with some embarrassing questions and chugging a glass of beer. It was great fun and I’m excited to get involved. They meet every week and you can choose to run or hike the trail. The run was beautiful on the hillside outside of Kigali.

Random Adventures

2010-02-08T13:17:00.000-08:00

I seem to get myself into some crazy adventures. This one is up there as one of the most random adventures…ever. It begins like this…I was reading the Bract Travel Guide to Rwanda and there was an article about a man who built some solar ovens in Rwanda. I sent him an email and told him that I was interested in building one at the village. He wrote back the next day and was very helpful. He has since left Rwanda and returned to his home in South Africa. He suggested that I go and visit a South African couple that are doctors in Rwanda. He gave them one of the ovens. As I set out on Sunday morning to find them, the only thing that I knew was that they are doctors at the hospital in Gahini. My plan was to just go to the hospital and ask around. Two of the other volunteers were headed to a lake that’s located very close to Gahini so we went together. I was an experience from the very beginning….

We took a moto for about 20 minutes to catch the bus. On the moto ride, my whole bag opened up and the things inside were all over the road. I began to yell…STOP at the driver. We turned around and about 15 kids came running with my things. I recovered everything but some food and my book.

After a long bus ride we arrived at Jambo Beach. It’s at a beautiful lake and it was so peaceful to sit there. After we ate, I left my friends and headed up a long hill for a walk to Gahini. I arrived at the hospital and began lurking around. I finally found someone that worked there and inquired with them. The woman pointed me in the direction of another doctor. The doctor was so nice and walked me to their home. Unfortunately, they were not home. I wasn’t sure what to do. I decided to leave a note. The doctor I was with finally found their phone number and we called. I waited at his home until I was trying to contact the South African doctors. I finally reached them and he said he was on his way. I was relieved that I would actually meet them! When he arrived I couldn’t believe it. I saw him while I was at Jambo Beach and didn’t even know it was them. He drove me back to Jambo Beach. I sat with them for awhile and they even invited me back to their home for coffee and cake…boy was that a treat! Their home is beautiful. It’s up on a hill overlooking the lake. They are doing such amazing work in the Gahini community and around Rwanda. I still can’t believe that I was brave enough to just show up and meet them. They said that many people do it and they are glad to meet me. I was relieved. If I was them, I don’t know what I would think if some random person showed up at their home. I’m looking forward to staying in touch with them! I love making friends!

Life and Death at Agahozo.....It's A Girl!!!

2010-02-06T07:11:00.000-08:00

Mother went through a hard labor and finally gave birth at around 4:18pm to a healthy baby girl. Both mother and daughter are doing very well.

Check out the pics!!!!

Sometimes you learn the hard way...

2010-02-05T11:56:00.000-08:00

This blog post is not easy to write. I just want to put that out there. I debated even posting this but here I go. Yesterday started out like any morning. I got up early to be at the farm at 6:45. I’m been working ever since I arrived on the arrival of chickens in the village. I made many trips to Kigali to talk with someone who is knowledgeable about chickens, learn about and buy vaccines, purchase the food, get heaters, and a few other things to prepare for their arrival. I’ve been so excited and told everyone about their arrival. I even told one of the people here that I was going to set up my tent by their house so I could check up on them in the night (I think she thought I was serious and she said I was crazy). I got a call soon after I arrived at the farm from the assistant director of the village, Alain. He told me that he found a place to get chickens but we must pick them up today! I couldn’t believe it…we were actually going to pick them up.

I had a meeting that I needed to go to in order to inform all the counselors where their family would be working on the farm on Saturday. I gave my announcements and headed back to the farm to set up the chicken coop for the arrival of its new residents. We had all the supplies but we didn’t have anything set up because we didn’t expect to get them so fast. I had such a blast with the workers setting up the coop. We spread out wood chips and laid out food and water. One of the workers came in and asked how the chickens know how to get into the laying boxes and lay their eggs there. I was asked this question through another one of the workers who speaks English well. I told him that it was his job to sit in the box and teach the hens how to do it. They couldn’t believe I said that…all the workers looked at me like I was crazy. I told the worker that knows English that it was a joke and then all the workers were laughing. We have so many fun bonding moments.

I left around 1 for Kigali. We brought a truck with us that had the back closed because it was raining. We had many errands to do while in Kigali, before and after getting the chickens. After a few errands, we went to pick up Alain’s brother who was going to help us get the hens. We drove out to pick up the newest members of the Agahozo family. We got 300, 45 day old hens and placed them in the back of the car. We had more errands to do including picking up one of the kids at the hospital. We had to wait a while at the hospital. Time works so differently here…nothing is quick. We noticed that the back was getting warm so we made sure the windows were open.

We arrived back to Agahozo around 9:30 and headed to the chicken coop to unload the new arrivals. As we began to open the boxes, we noticed that some of the chickens weren’t moving. We lost 95 of the 300 hens. It hurt when the reality hit me. I felt like crying(no tears came though). I had many thoughts and emotions that were coming to me. Why didn’t I insist on coming straight back to Agahozo? I should have opened the back to allow more air. Lots of I wish and I should have…sometimes lessons are learned the hard way. I know what I’ll do next time. Whenever people make mistakes we have the phrase all least no one died…in this case they did…and it’s hard. The director of the village was understanding and comforting. There were still a few that didn’t look good. I walked back to the coop by myself to check on the hens and move the dead ones away from the others.

It was around 11 when I was back at the coop. It was great to see others ones busy eating and drinking. It’s hard for the ones that we lost but I realized that now we have 205 to tend to. I went over to the ones that didn’t look good and tried to encourage them (in the morning we only lost one of the ones that didn’t look good from the night before).
In the morning it was hard to explain what happened to the workers. Finally the one that speaks English arrived and helped to explain. Some of the workers helped me dig a hole.

I wrote this post when I was upset. It helped to write this to put out there how I feel. I know that it’s a bit dramatic but sometimes it happens. Last night and today weren’t easy. It’s part of being a farmer. Sometimes you learn the hard way. I feel much better now. The girls in my family came over after dinner. We drank tea, listened to music and took pictures. They’re so much fun to be around!

A Walk to Town

2010-02-01T10:01:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I got a call from a friend of mine that lives in Rubona (the closest small town which has a market 2 days a week) and he told me that he's sick. I was in Kigali so I couldn't bring him anything. I gave him a call the next day and asked if I could bring him anything...he asked for some water because his house doesn’t have good drinking eater so I decided to walk to his home (located 20 minutes from the youth village). We are located in the eastern province. The area is very rural and every house has its own vegetables surrounding. Most are made of cement and local materials. There's lots of poverty in the area and many grow just enough to be able to eat.

The walk was very interesting. Everyone on the road stopped and starred as I walked past. Whenever I was passed there were cries of muzungu…muzungu…..muzungu! These were usually followed by a flock of young kids running after me. Many of the kids say good morning…even though it was the evening…I think it’s the only English many know. As I walked there was a girl that followed me for about half the distance. About half way to my friend’s home a teenage boy come running after me. I felt that he was very brave for coming up to me. I’m still not sure why he came up to me…couldn’t figure out if he was asking for money or just wanted to practice English and have someone to talk to. He told me where he was from and a little about himself. He told me that he doesn’t have any family and might have to drop out of school because he has no one to pay this school fees. I later learned from one of my roommates that this is common in Rwanda. Kids get a free education in primary school and then for secondary school, they must pay. Because there are so many orphans in Rwanda, the government can’t afford to pay. This is a hard situation for many teens (that’s one of the great things about Agahozo, it provides education for teens in need!). I enjoyed the conversation with boy and I continue to get insight into what life is like in Rwanda for people. He was very nice and even asked about my life.

On the way back from my friend’s house, I hopped on a moto taxi because it was getting dark. The moto rides switch between being terrifying and exhilarating. Sometimes I feel like I’m on a roller coaster ride.

Beans Blowin' in the Wind

2010-02-01T06:22:00.000-08:00

It’s been awhile since I have posted. Life’s busy here and full of excitement. For the past week, we haven’t had electricity from 8am-5pm which makes working on the computer a challenge.

My mornings begin around 6:20 and I’m at the farm at 6:45. I never know what each day might have in store for me. Sometimes I spend most of the day on the farm while other days I’m in meetings, preparing for the arrival of 350 chicks, or working on the computer to keep everything on the farm organized. Salomon and I are working on having the farm act as a business. We are going to “sell” produce to the village’s kitchen (no money will actually be exchanged) so that we can see how much we are producing. I like the flexibility of my days. In the evenings, I try to spend time with my family. My days feel like camp days…with each day feeling like a week and a week feeling like a day.

I’m learning so much here…both skills and dos and don’ts of Rwanda. I just learned that in Rwandan culture shoes don’t go on the carpet…this was after many times of walking on the carpet. Also, do not ask someone how many cows they own. This is the equivalent of asking someone how much money that they make and seen as rude.

Some of my favorite interactions on the farm are with the 5 females that work on the farm. Sometimes I wish that I knew what they were thinking. They enjoying laughing at me or better than that, laughing with me. They are teaching me so many skills. I learned the process of getting the beans ready. First you harvest the beans, you then lay them out in the sun to dry, after that you pile them up and beat them with a stick (my hand is covered with blisters from this step), and the last step (and my favorite part) is separating the beans from the dirt and left over dry plant pieces. The girls taught me how to separate. You put the mix in a basket and hold it with your hands at belt level. With your feet together and a flick of the wrist the beans go up in the air. The wind lifts the dirt and residue away. I’m so glad that they’re patient with me. I spent hours this week doing this…and it’s the best workout…maybe I’ll make a video…Get in Shape, Become a Farmer! I see it as the next craze in the states!

On Friday, I began to teach English to the farm workers. There were able 25 people. It was very nerve racking…for those of you who know me well, know my own difficulties with English. (My sister was proofreading my application for this position and called me up. She asked about my English abilities. I asked her why. Apparently on the application, I marked my English ability as poor. She thought it was a joke to see if she actually read it.) I wish there was another English speaker there not just for the help but to have a good laugh after my class. I have various levels from knowing nothing to able to understand most everything that I say. At the end of the class I asked if anyone has any questions. I don’t think they understood. I was asking if there were any English questions but they thought questions in general. I began to get questions about money and time on the farm. I decided to have a time for English and a time for a farm meeting.

The weekend was spent in Kigali and it was lots of fun! I’m really enjoying meeting people. All the foreigners that I meet here are all doing such cool and fascinating things. On the plane I made this incredible woman who has been living in Rwanda for over a year and teaches how to teach English. She has traveled the world and wrote a few books. In the airport she introduced me to people that she works with. I met up with them this past weekend and I’m excited for friends outside the village. They took me to a bar that a Rwandan friend owns. We were the only foreigners there. The area that it’s in is very lively and happening place late at night. Mara and I met this guy who’s a dentist and is starting clinics in Rwanda. We had a great conversation with him and he might even build one of his clinics by the village! Mara and I played an ultimate frisbee game at the local sports complex with some Rwandan teenagers…the game was great and encourages us to start a teen at the village.

Tu bishv’at (the b-day of trees) was this weekend. We had some kids over on Friday night to celebrate with us. I got to eat a new tree fruit…jackfruit! It’s so slimy and delicious!

First Pics Are Up!

2010-01-26T23:12:00.000-08:00

I had some of my first pictures...check out the slideshows!

A Lesson on Time

2010-01-25T20:32:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite things about traveling and going to new places is learning how to navigate that particular place. I usually pick on directions and understanding of how to obtain needed information to get around. Before I have that comfort feeling in a particular place, it's uncomfortable and unsettling for me. Knowing a place gives me independence in a place and ownership over what I want to do. I'm working on getting more comfortable in my surroundings here. It's taking longer to learn here than other places that I have traveled to because it's just so different from any of my other adventures. I'm getting more used to being surrounded by kids in the market, the stares I get on the street(when this happens, I usually wave and then get a big smile from the person), or having people call out to me (people like to yell out the words that they know in English which usually is good morning and I like to reply in kinyarwanda).

There are many differences here that I'm getting used to (not to say that one way is better than another, just different and something to get used to):
1. All of the grass to cut by hand using a tool that looks like a machete...enivronmentally friendly lawn movers...power of the people
2. Laundry is done by hand. I was excited to do it on my own when some of my roommates asked if I was capable of doing it. After watching me for a little while, they tried to convince me to pay someone to do it. I'm more determined than ever to do it on my own...even if it takes hours.
3. I was at the market today and there was a man sitting on the ground with his head down.
There was a crowd surrounding him. I asked the Rwandan I was with what was going on. He explained that the man probably stole something and people were taking turns hitting him. I explained to my friend that where I'm from, both the person that stole and the people that hit him will go to jail. We were both foreign to each other's systems.
4. There seems to be very little grey area here. There's good or bad, right or wrong. I had a long conversation (and continue to have it) with one of my Rwandan roommates about this. I'm sure I'll have a blog entry about this when I have a better understanding.
5. Men and women have different roles. Enough said...there will be plently more posts about this in the future.

And the biggest difference....time just works differently here
There's so much a want to say about this. I apprechiate it on one hand but also frustrated at times. Things just work slower here. I'm having to learn a balance between going at Rwandan pace and realizing that things need to get done. One of my favorite books is 3 Cups of Tea. In that book, the American is trying to get the school build and the leader of the village pulls his aside and says first we drink tea. It's about building relationships. I'm learning that to be very true...so I drink lots of tea! I working on taking things a little slower...and I bring a book where ever I go because it's rare that a meeting will start on time. There's a big emphasis at the village on time management. There are also other aspects of time that are different. I had a very interesting trip to Kigali yesterday (this was the 4th day I tried to get there...finally, success!) to get supplies for the chickens (I'm currently preparing for the arrival of 300 baby chicks). Another one of the volunteers also went to get supplies. We spent hours negotiating prices and payment for workers. In Kigali a daily worker gets 2,000frw. They get this price if they work 1 hour or 10. This was hard to work with since we only needed workers for 2 hrs and we spent that amount of time trying to figure out payment.

I love it here so far. I'm enjoying the process of learning and being in a new place. My job is great, my roommates and friends are awesome, and the kids are incredible.

As I was riding to market on the back of a bicycle, I was looking around. I saw a boy in front of a house singing and practicing Michael Jackson moves. There are so many funny sight all around. I'm excited to continue to keep my eyes open to all the wonderful, exciting, and new sights all around me.

I walked to the mango trees today and ate 6 mangoes in 1 sitting! I also had 3 passion fruit, 4 bananas, and half of a pineapple...

Random Thoughts at 5:30 in the Morning

2010-01-21T19:43:00.000-08:00

I have not been sleeping as much as I would like here. There's so much going on that I want to be a part of. I think it's finally catching up to me so as you can imagine, I was not happy when I woke up at 5:30 this morning. I've had many things on my mind so I thought that I'd share a few things....

As most of you know, there was a genocide here in 1994 that killed around 1 million people. Many people here are very open to share their experience...even when you least expect it. There have been many times that I have been in the middle of a conversation and someone will say something (many times just out of the blue) or an experience. This is something that I had to get used to. I'm used to the mentality of don't ask don't tell. I think about stories of people who survived the Holocaust. Many people had a hard time talking about their experience and tried to just block it out. When we were at the picnic on Saturday, I had a conversation with one of the staff members here. She began to tell me that it's hard for her to be close to water because all that she can think about is how her family was killed and thrown into a lake. What do you say when you hear that? I just put my hand on her shoulder and said that I know that it's not easy. I think that it is very healthy the way most of open to dicussion. I think that it has led to interal strength for many of the people around me.

All around me there's so much beauty both from the people and the landscape. As I have written about before, I was assigned to a family here at the village. There are 15 kids, 1 house mother, 1 counselor, and 2 volunteers (one of those that's me!) I love being around the kids. They have such beautiful smiles (that truly shows their internal beauty) and have a way of taking a hard day and making it a little sunnier. I'm amazed at their thoughtful questions, creativity, and how much they want to learn. Last night I went for a run around the village as the sun was setting. I wish that you could see what my eyes witnessed. Rwanda is truly a land of a thousand hills. As I ran around the school which is located at the highest point, I saw banana tree filled rolling hills and 2 lakes in the distance. The sun was setting so there were beautiful colors to paint the landscape. This country also has the most interesting birds. On my run I saw birds in about every color. I have big plans on Shabbat for taking pictures of the landscape.

Who likes mushy food and tea with their sugar....definitely the Rwandans. I made a stir fry for dinner and I felt the vegetable were cooked very well. My Rwandan roommates said that the veggies were too hard. I love their mushy food so I guess we'll settle on mushy food. I asked one of my roommates how much sugar he puts in his tea. He said not so much just 2 spoon fulls...a little I said. The sugar is much sweeter here and I only use a forth of a spoon.

Tonight, my house is hosting Kabbalat Shabbat. I had a dream last night where I forgot the words to Henei Ma Tov....

I'm In Rwanda...

2010-01-20T02:32:00.000-08:00

I’m currently sitting in Agahozo Shalom’s Kigali house (located in the capital city and about an hour from the village). I just sent a text message to Mara saying…I’m in Rwanda?!?!? I’ve been saying this to her ever since I arrived in Rwanda in a excited, unbelievable kind of way. It’s so hard still to believe that I’m actually here. It’s definitely a lot different from anywhere that I have ever been to before.

I want to give the highlights from the past few days. On Saturday, all the first year kids went on a picnic at a local lake. It took us 2 hours to walk there. Along the way, we walked through the local village. I got (as did the other volunteers this day and everyday that we venture out of the village) lots of stares and shouts of mazungo (white person…also translated as conquerer)…..

I began to get very tired and went to sleep here. I’m picking up the writing on the ride back to the village packed in a van with all of the teachers. In order to meet up with the van, I had to take a moto ride from the house. It was my first moto ride. I’ve been hearing lots of stories from the other volunteers about these rides on the back of the motos which are motor bike taxis. As I road down the street, the sun was rising up ahead. It was beautiful watching the sun come up for my first moto experience.

….Now I’m going to pick up where I left off from the night before. The walk was lots of fun. I walked with some of the girls that are in my family. We talked about life and we taught each other words. When we got there, Mara and I introduced some of the kids to frisbee. We’re excited to teach it at the school. Some of the kids sat around while others played cards or sports. A highlight of the picnic was going on a boat ride on the lake. I watched as the first group got in the boat and was amazed they actually made it back. The boat sat so low in the water. I also took part in the ride when it was my family’s turn. For many of the kids, this was their first time on a boat. There were many shouts of excitement throughout the entire ride. When it rains here, it pours. I experiences this on the walk back to the village.

I spent the rest of the weekend in Kigali. Mara showed me around so I have a better sense of where everything is located. We went to one of the markets. It was so overwhelming. There were many teenage boys that tried to show us around the market and find things that we needed. I even ran into some people that I met in the airport when I arrived. We exchanged numbers and I’m looking forward to hanging out with them.

Chaim Peri, the director of the village in Israel that Agahozo Shalom is modeled after, arrived from Israel and road back with us to the village. He spoke to the kids. He’s a very inspirational. He spoke to the staff about the idea that it takes a village to raise a child and took funny stories about his experiences.

I’m in Rwanda?!?!? On Monday morning, I worked in the field with the workers doing as they kept saying, cultivating the land. We were clearing some land to be able to plant more. There were many funny interactions. There are 30 workers. They tried out all their English with me. One even told me that I work just as hard as the men in a surprised way. Later in the afternoon, I asked one of the Rwandan counselors about what the workers must be thinking seeing me out in the field with them.

On Tuesday Salomon and I began collecting information to create a plan for the farm. We talked with the head of the kitchen about what and how many vegetables he buys every week. In the afternoon, I road into Kigali to meet with the man who is helping us with the chickens. The ride into Kigali was crazy and a little stressful. All the teachers packed into the van. I was to meet with the man at 6 and at 6:30 we were still dropping off the teachers. The only big frustration that I have so far is the language barrier.

This is an overview of what my days have been like. I'll write a post soon about my feelings and thoughts here.

Tomatoes Between My Toes

2010-01-15T01:45:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I got a tour of the whole farm from Salomon who runs the farm. The farm is quite large. There is one part behind the school and the other on the opposite side of the village. We took pictures next to some of the yummy fruits and veggies. I have to say that I'm getting spoiled. I get to eat delicious mangos and passionfruit everyday! I began to learn what we grow and how much of everything...and I now understand my role on the farm! I'll be working with Salomon to create a master plan for the village and document what, when, and how much we are planting. My first big project is to get the chicken coops ready. We'll be getting 300 baby chicks in the next few weeks. I'm meeting with someone next week to learn about what it'll take to take care of the chickens...that means in 6 months we'll have fresh eggs!

Last night I joined my assigned family here at the village of 16 girls. They are so cute. Another one of the volunteers, Michaela is also in the family. She taught them the umbrella song and talked about what the song means. She talked about the importance of friends. I'm excited to get to know the girls. Already the best part here is getting to know the kids. I was walking with some of the girls on the way to lunch today when it began to rain. One of them said that I could stand under her umbrella as she put her hand up in the air to symbolize an umbrella. All the girls began to say that to each other. Michaela, what a great song to teach them!

Salomon asked me to be at the farm at 6:45 to meet all the workers. I arrived then and was introduced to the 33 workers. I spoke to them and Salomon translated. I got lots of waves and big smiles. Many came up to me and said that they want to learn english and told them that I want to learn Kinyarwanda. I asked what I should work on and Salomon said tomatoes. Little did I know it was going to be one of the funniest and most awesome experiences...ever.

One of the female workers was also assigned to tomatoes. I knew that my knowledge of 2 words in Kinyarwanda and her 10 words of English was going to make for an interesting morning. She had 3 buckets to place the tomatoes. She tried to explain what went in each pile. At first, I thought one piles was for bad tomatoes, one for small ones, and another for the larger tomatoes. There were also 2 other girls working close by that kept coming to where we were. The girl I was working with kept moving the tomatoes that I put in the bin. I was confused and I think she might have been frustrated with me. Then she got a great idea...instead of showing me which ones go in each, she had me feel them. Then I understood. The distinction wasn't big and small, it was bruised and good tomatoes. Wow, I was so relieved when I finally understood (and I'm sure she was too). The experience became lots of fun as both of us (and other workers who kept popping in) and we began to teach each other words in English and Kinyarwanda. I decided to have a project where I put pictures up by the farm with words in English and Kinyarwanda. We were both in piles of tomatoes. I began to have tomatoes all over my feet. They even squished between my toes.

I was having such a great time. Then Salomon came by and asked if I wanted to go to market with him to buy some tarps. At first I wasn't sure if I wanted to leave but then decided to go. I hopped on the back of his bicycle and we rode to the market. We passed through the village and he pointed out everything as we rode by. There were lots of people about and it was such an exciting experience! It was my first time out of Agahozo Shalom since I got here. People would waves as we passed and kids liked to shout out words that they know in english. I responded with some kinyarwanda. When we reached the village of Rubona, Salomon took me to his home and then walked me around town to see everything. People kept asking him who I was and he would say my boss. I kept correcting him and said that he was my boss. We came to an agreement that we were each other's boss. He told me that when he came home from work, everyone would ask about me and who I was. He was excited for it.

What great beginning experiences and people that I'm meeting!

A Rwandan Welcome from the Ambassador

2010-01-13T08:47:00.001-08:00

After 3 flights and many hours, I landed safely in Kigali, Rwanda. One of my favorite things about flying is sitting next to interesting people on the flight. On my first two flights, Atlanta to Newark and Newark to Brussels, I didn't even sit next to anyone. The plane was empty and I was bummed not to have someone to talk with on the flight. It was made up for on the flight from Brussels to Kigali. I sat next to this awesome woman from California. She's been living in Rwanda for over a year and I was able to ask her many questions. She writes text books on how to teach english and travels the world. She was very interesting to talk to and I hope to see her again soon. To top it all off, when we arrived in Kigali, she introduced me to many people in the airport including the American ambassador. He was very friendly and talked about how much he enjoyed his trip to Agahozo Shalom. He even introduced me to some people. It was a great introduction to the country.

It was 9pm by the time to got all my luggage. I was picked up by Shimon a staff member from the school and we went out for pizza. It was dark as we drove back to the village. He kept saying how beautiful the area was all around us which made me excited to see it in the light. When we arrived at the village, Shimon took me to my house. I was shocked when I saw my room. It's a lot bigger than I imagined...I even have my own bathroom and shower. I'm living in a house with 4 guys and I'm excited to get to know them. Many people that I meet and some of the volunteers keep saying that I'm in the coolest house!

My first day consisted of a tour of the school and an introduction to the farm. I got to eat fresh mango and passionfruit from the farm! One of the cows just had a baby and it's soooo cute! I'm going on a big tour with Solomon who runs the farm tomorrow. I plan on taking lots of notes and pictures.

A New Year Means New Adventures!

2010-01-10T20:31:00.000-08:00

Today starts my journey to Rwanda! It's so hard to believe that it's finally here and I'm actually going considering 2 months ago I had no idea where Rwanda was located. It all started with Mara and Yoshi convincing me over Sukkot to look into applying for the position. I told Mara (another one of the volunteers and my friend in Rwanda) to stop. She asked if she was bothering me with all the talk of Rwanda. I said no and that if you keeps talking to me about it, I actually do it and that I'm not sure if I'm ready for a big move like...well I guess here I am, headed to Rwanda...all the rest is history...

I'm thankful to the JDC for giving me the opportunity to have this experience! They have been great. I will be working at a high school called the Agahozo Shalom Youth Village doing environmental education and farming. I know little more about what I'll actually be doing but I'm okay with that...just excited for the opportunity and a year of learning and adventures!

Since finding out that I got the position, I took out a map and found where Rwanda was actually located. After doing that, I read everything that I could find about the country. The history is not a pretty one. It's been a hard read. I've been thinking alot about hatred and what convinces one to kill another? After all the reading, I'm ready just to be there and see the hope and rebuilding taking place in the village.

Next big question...how do you pack for a year abroad? I have to say that it was not a fun process...should I bring this or will I need that? I think most everything I brought is camping gear so I might be wearing the same shirt many times but at least I'll be ready for any adventure!

3 weeks, 11 beds, lots of adventure...priceless

2009-12-28T16:06:00.000-08:00

I'm currently 30,000 feet in the air somewhere over Colorado. Out the window I see miles of light grey clouds as the sun is setting. I'm leaving California after spending 4 days at Yosemite and 4 days at the Hazon Food Conference. I just realized that since leaving Teva Dec. 7th, I've slept in 11 different beds in 6 different states. I love the adventure travel life of meeting new people, seeing great friends, and having new experiences. There's a lot more ahead. I'm also excited about getting to Rwanda and being in the same place for a little while (I'm sure that will also include lots of adventures!).

I enjoyed being at the food conference. I saw lots of good friends from many diiferent places in my life. I helped to lead some of the children's programming. My favorite activity with the kids was tidepooling. For those of you that don't know (I didn't know what it was until this weekend) it involves going to the beach and finding puddles of water with lots of sea creatures. My favorite thing that we found was a star fish. The guy leading the activity showed us how it can tickle you by putting its mouth parts to your arm. The were also lots of little crabs that the kids enjoyed crawling on their hands.

I had the opportunity to attend a couple of the "adult" sessions. I got the hear on inspirational talk by a panel of female farmers. It was funny when they were talking about their farming clothing styles. It was just cool hearing from other females that enjoy farming and the connection to land. I went to other sessions on composting/biodynamic farming and genetically modefied crops. These are both topics that I know only a little about and I'm excited to learn more. Does this excite anyone else? I'd love to hear your thoughts. I think I'll write a post soon about these topics.

After the conference, I went to the Monterey Bay Aquarium! Some of the creatures were incredible. Check out the picture of my favorite creature that I learned about...the Sea Dragon.

I'm on top of the world...or at least the 5th tallest waterfall

2009-12-23T07:03:00.000-08:00

I know that I haven't landed in Rwanda yet (leaving date is Jan. 11th) but I want to share my current adventure. This adventure is intended to get me ready for my next big move. I wanted to have some time for relaxing and self reflecting. So...I set out to California. I'm here for Hazon's Food Conference helping to lead the kids program. I decided that since I'm already over here, I might as well go to Yosemite. Thanks to Tzlil for helping me how awesome the place is and encouraging me to take part in the beauty of the west (I have this habit of hearing others travel stories and then just have to check it out for myself). I love being a tourist in my own country. Sometimes I think that you have to go to other places but look right here. This place is freakin awesome.

On the bus on the way to the Yosemite Bug Hostel, I met this lady who works in the park. Her and I spent the evening talking about life and she gave me some suggestions on places to visit in the park. It was a great start to the trip. We met another person traveling from Austria who gave us a ride into the park. As we approached, I was blown away by the grandeur of this place. The granite rock walls reach up into the sky and many have huge waterfalls cascading off of them. The landscape was also enhanced by the white snow.

My first day in the park I watched a movie about the park and hiked to the lower falls of Yosemite Falls (the fifth largest waterfall in the world). I headed back to the hostel early for a yoga class and get this...the hostel even has a spa! I treated myself to the sauna and hot tub. The second day, I hiked to the top of Yosemite Falls...just 2,420ft...and man am I sore...but it was incredible. The hike was steep but views made up for the intensity of the hike. I got to see the whole Yosemite landscape. There was also a point where you could see all three levels of the falls. The top part was covered in ice and snow which made hiking a bit tricky. And of course the day ended with a dip in the hot tub. The third day I got up early to catch a bus to Badger Pass, the ski area in Yosemite. There I joined up with a group led by one of the park rangers for a snowshoeing adventure. We hiked up to the old Badger Pass ski area and learned about winter ecolgy along the way. He told us that 70% of crops grown in California get their water source from the snow melt in Yosemite...he said in that way we're all connected to the place. I sure felt that being there. From the top it was beautiful. All you could see where snow topped trees for miles. We even had a race down the mountain in 2ft of snow and believe me, it wasn't easy. I had lunch with the ranger and he was even on my bus on the way back to the hostel. I enjoyed talking with him about the park. After Badger Pass, I hiked to Mirror Lake which was frozen so the mirror was gone.

The park is very quite this time of year. It's hard to believe that in the summer, the place gets packed. I spent much of the time hiking on my own which lends itself to lots of thinking and reflecting. There were many times that I had the mentality that I want to see this, do that, go there. I do want to do all those things but there's a time and a place for the now. I had to work on enjoying the moment and not think of what might be next. I think that's going to be my big goal and aim...to be in the present. If I don't see sometime then I want to be ok with that and realize that I saw what I saw and it was incredible. There are so many things that I might miss but that's ok. I do think that I need to some exceptions sometimes...especially when meeting a cute guy from New Zealand who travels the world learning to make wine. I don't think that I could meet a more perfect guy...lol. I was hiking the falls and met the guy at the beginning. We talked about New Zealand, traveling, and wine amoung other things....all some of my favorites! I could have gone down with him at the beginning but decided to continue to enjoy the hike and go further...I guess this is a time for exceptions to goals. I am glad though that I made it to the top.

Song Dudu and I Wrote for Orientation

2009-12-09T04:53:00.000-08:00

Headed to Rwanda!!!!!!
to the tune of "Wagon Wheel"

Headed to Rwanda to the land of 1,000 hills
And it's kinda scary, but a lot of thrills
Starin' out the plane
And pray to God I'll be alright

I made it through the interview
And here I am
I'll be on the farm, And I'll lend a hand
Together we're ready for this adventure

Chorus:
So, I'm gonna to teach the youth, gonna teach them well
Give them hope, I can tell
Hey, we'll have a good time
Teach the youth help them grow
Teach the youth what they want to know
Hey, we'll have a good time

Comin’ to Rwanda from Israel and USA
We’re going to take part in this amazing project
Fixing and building
Creating and growing

Oh, there’s a stunning natural beauty, green grass, and fruit trees
Hang out on the farm or viewin’ the landscape
But, let’s work together
To livin’ the good life in Aghahozo

Repeat Chorus

Walkin’ round the village maintaining its grace
Creating big new projects
Keeping it a beautiful place
Working together with nature and all that’s around
To hiking through these hills

And we'll shed some sweat but I'm sure it'll be fun
Caring about the environment
Should be the vision of everyone
Tikkun olam
Creatin’ the leaders of tomorrow

Repeat Chorus